Movie Review: Tombstone (1993)

Tombstone (1993) directed by George P. Cosmatos

Wyatt Earp (Kurt Russell) arrives at Tombstone, Arizona, with his wife Mattie (Dana Wheeler-Nicholson) hoping to leave his law-enforcement life behind. His brothers Virgil (Sam Elliott) and Morgan (Bill Paxton) are already in town. The brothers plan to make a good life in the boom town. One hotel's bar has a difficult Faro dealer who is driving away business and is too intimidating to be fired. Wyatt goes in, confronts the man, drags him out of the hotel, and then takes the job for 25% of the profits. The hotel owner is happy with the deal. Old friend Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer) shows up with Kate Elder (Joanna Pacula). He's a well-educated Southern gentleman who rubs a lot of people the wrong way with his volatile and eccentric behavior. 

Trouble comes with the Cowboys, a ruthless group of cattle rustlers who provide a lot of business for the town but also a lot of violence. Cowboy leader Curly Bill Brocius (Powers Boothe) hears Earp is in town and confronts Wyatt at the gambling table, making it clear that lawmen are not welcome and certainly not expected to enforce the law. The Earp brothers try to stay out of local conflicts, though they find it hard to stand aside as the Cowboys run roughshod over the town, e.g. killing the sheriff (Harry Carey, Jr.), an incident that doesn't get prosecuted for lack of witnesses (though even for film viewers the event looks like it could have been an accident). Virgil becomes disgusted and takes the sheriff job, pulling his brothers in. The situation gets more tense and difficult, leading to the famous Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (which actually happened in a lot behind the stables) and the Vendetta Ride (after the Cowboys cripple Virgil and kill Morgan, Wyatt takes a posse that roams the countryside confronting (i.e. killing) the Cowboys). 

The movie walks a fine line between a classic western and the then-popular revisionist western (see Unforgiven or Dances with Wolves). Plenty of shoot-outs fill the screen time, though they are a lot more realistic and a lot less glamorized than in classic westerns. The score is a clear homage to Elmer Bernstein (who did the iconic Magnificent Seven score) and fits well with the gorgeous scenery and dramatic events. The Earps are clearly the good guys but they have a tough time of it, especially figuring out the right thing to do. Wyatt has trouble dealing with his drug-addicted wife, especially when showgirl Josephine (Dana Delany) arrives and captures his heart. He's hardly the squeaky-clean hero of yesterfilm. The town is gritty and half built (it was a boom town, after all, so I'm sure there was plenty of construction ongoing). A lot of bits of regular life are thrown in, like the theaters in Tombstone and the photography studio right next to the O.K. Corral, making the film feel less stagey. The performances are great and the cast look more like actual historical characters and not your favorite actor playing dress-up. The careful blending of all these elements makes the movie more engaging and more compelling. This movie is a great western.

Highly recommended.