All the Pretty Horses (2001, VHS)

ALL THE PRETTY HORSES is a good story put to film but it feels a little different from what I expected because of Billy Bob Thornton's unique directing style.

The story itself is a gritty coming-of-age tale about a young man's journey into another world and what he finds there. Matt Damon goes with his best friend into Mexico to work as a cowboy. The two buddies meet a somewhat disturbed young loner whom they come to care for but of whom they are wary because of his erratic behavior. When Matt and his friend find work at a ranch, Matt falls in love with the beautiful daughter (played by Penelope Cruz) of the wealthy ranch owner. This causes problems, problems compounded by the behavior of the erratic young drifter, and after several extraordinarily tragic events, at the end the protagonist finally emerges wiser and stronger.

Mexico unfortunately is shown not only as a place of great beauty and as a place where there are many good people, but as a place of brutality and fear. While no one would deny that there is brutality in Mexico, the United States is shown as a Lily-White Heaven in contrast to our neighboring country. As a matter of fact, when showing what is supposed to be the prairie land around San Angelo, Texas, the voiceover talks about how "close to heaven" this place is. And when you get down into Mexico...well, you get the idea.
Cowboy prejudice. It will be good when films begin to portray life between these two countries in its reality; that is to say, there is brutality in the USA just as bad as brutality in Mexico, and there are heroic people in Mexico just as there are in the United States. I am hoping to see a change in stereotypes here in films as the 21st century progresses and as the two countries get over their fear of each other and see each others' peoples as one, as we do with our Canadian neighbors to the north.

The amazing thing about the film is Billy Bob's hand of direction. He has a unique, almost jarring way of cutting in and out of scenes and acting levels and thoughts. I don't think I have ever seen so many fade-to-black segues between scenes. Billy Bob obviously has an amazing and mystical talent, but here it really makes for, in my opinion, a bumpy ride down a washboard road as we follow the plotline of the movie.

This is sad in several respects. It short-circuited a lot of the emotional chemistry of the story (what a waste too of the awesomely beautiful Penelope Cruz!) and the movie for me; kinda like watching a slide show instead of a motion picture. I think the actors did very well, but they must have labored trying to adjust to the quirky, almost mystical vision Billy Bob had for the story.

Still, one aspect of the story is well worth watching the movie to see. Look near the end at the decision that the young Mexican woman has to make and what she says about it. It is a decision that caused those of us watching the movie to have a long discussion after the movie was over.

So I'll give a thumbs up to this movie. O yeah, there are a few horses in this picture, but they are sort of window dressing. The main thing about this movie is the tone and the feeling, and while Billy Bob did passable work with all this, I think next time out as a director he'll really have learned from this one and the next one should be really good. Like a number of unique persons with unique points of view, his best direction jobs are yet to come.

***