Review of Heaven's Gate (1980) by Victor B — 07 Jun 2010

After the Oscar win for The Deer Hunter (1978). Michael Cimino was given a blank cheque by United Artists to make his dream film, a bleak anti-western about the infamous Johnson County War. It was to be the new Gone With The Wind, instead, it was the biggest flop of all time and bankrupted United Artists.

But, the fact of the matter is it isn't THAT bad, but it's hard to watch, and it didn't NEED to be that long or cost that much. Set in Johnson County, Wyoming in 1890. It has local sheriff Jim Averill (Kris Kristofferson) caught in the middle of a battle between the Wyoming Stock Growers Association led by Frank Canton (Sam Waterston), who are feuding with European settlers on their land, and are planning as massacre of the settlers, but Averill will have non of it.

Meanwhile, he's in a relationship with local bordello madam Ella Watson (Isabelle Huppert), who is having a secret affair with landowners enforcer Nathan Champion (Christopher Walken). It does have some good moments, but not all that much really happens, and Cimino's ego is on show throughout, it was a vanity project for him, and he wasn't thinking of who would want to see it.

It has a brilliant cast in it, also including Jeff Bridges, John Hurt, Brad Dourif, Mickey Rourke, Ronnie Hawkins, Terry O'Quinn and Joseph Cotten. But, even the beautiful rollerskating scene or college opening can't save it.

Close, but no cigar. :P.