'All The Pretty Horses' [Blu-ray]
(Matt Damon, Henry Thomas, Penélope Cruz, Lucas Black, Sam Shepard, Robert Patrick, et al / Blu-ray / PG-13 / (2000) 2020 / Mill Creek Entertainment)
Overview: Academy Award®-winner Matt Damon (1997, Best Original Screenplay, Good Will Hunting) stars in director Billy Bob Thornton's action-filled tale of love and loss based on Cormac McCarthy's best-selling novel.
John Grady Cole (Damon) and his best friend Lacey Rawlins (Henry Thomas) leave Texas and head south of the border in search of adventure and find work as horse wranglers.
But when Cole embarks on an illicit and passionate affair with the beautiful daughter (Penélope Cruz, Blow, Vanilla Sky) of the wealthy ranch owner who is his employer, events are set into motion which forever change the lives of all involved.
Blu-ray Verdict: Making its Blu-ray debut, here on the 20th Anniversary of the original theatrical release, 'All The Pretty Horses' is an excellent, epic western saga about two Texans who wind up in Mexico and all the trials and tribulations they go through, most of which are fascinating.
I've watched this film several times and it gets better and better with each viewing. The acting, storytelling and magnificent photography all made it a treasure of a film -- and a very underrated movie. It's easy to get very involved in this haunting tale.
Those two lead guys are played by Matt Damon ("John Grady Cole") and Henry Thomas ("Lacey Rawlins.") Along the way they are joined by the most interesting character of all of them: "Jimmy Blevins," played by Lucas Black. Jimmy is a nice kid but he's big-time trouble. His haunting face in his last scene is memorable.
Penelope Cruz is the attractive love interest, surrounded by a protective Mexican family. That family, mainly a father and aunt, were really enjoyable to watch, too, and I wish they had bigger roles in here.
Not only is the acting good and photography stunning, the soundtrack with Spanish music is outstanding. I've read they actually filmed this for a four-hour movie. Man, I'd love to see that.
The only things I didn't care for were Thomas' blasphemous mouth and a couple of unpleasant scenes where the innocent lead characters are accused of things they didn't do and suffer because of it.
In closing, 'All The Pretty Horses' really isn't an action movie, but much more of a drama and it's excellent storytelling at its finest. It also has narration from Damon, who is good at that sort of thing.
Overall, it's just such a powerful movie with a lot of good things to offer and so if you like good stories, don't pass this one up. This is a Widescreen Presentation (2.35:1) enhanced for 16x9 TVs.
'All The Pretty Horses' [Blu-ray] is out April 7th, 2020 via Mill Creek Entertainment.
www.MillCreekEnt.com