Review of The Quick and the Dead (1995) by Nathan C — 04 Nov 2011

I don't really know how to judge this film. As fun as this movie intends to be (since it's Raimi written all over it), it ends up taking itself too seriously. It's an odd movie, but likeably odd.

Sharon Stone - back when she was still attractive - is a female gunslinger who arrives in a small frontier town. Basically, she's motivated to go there for some reason... and she reaches opportunity when a shooting tournament is announced. While trying to get the corrupt leader of the town out of the way, she develops friendships with fellow competitors and tries to work things out from there.

Technically, it's amazing. With the gleefully awesome camerawork, beautiful sets, and the Spaghetti Western style that's a departure from most 90's Revisionist material, this film has some strong support. Russell Crowe, Gene Hackman, Lance Henriksen, and Leonardo DiCaprio all deliver good performances. It also has the makings of a cult film, and it's mostly because of Raimi's direction here. Some symbolism here and there don't hurt either.

However, Raimi both dodges bullets and takes hits. The uneven tone and inconsistency of things throws me off. Expecting us to go along with the cliches in a very dramatic manner works as well as riding a horse off a cliff. Stone is rather weak here, and came off as dull. At least she has some producing skills, though. Also, it looks like it's trying to emulate Leone's westerns instead of adding in its own flavor - a shocker, since Raimi added his own flavor to the horror genre with "The Evil Dead".

All in all, it may be quick, but it's also half dead. 'Tis a shame, since this film could've really delivered one hell of a fun ride. But at least this is better than nothing...