‘Yellowstone’ fans will be bored by Kevin Costner’s western

It’s been 550 days since a new episode of “Yellowstone” aired, which seems absurd for one of the most popular shows on television. But the behind-the-scenes drama since then has been as fraught as the Dutton family dynamic, leading to the ouster of the show’s star Kevin Costner. His departure has been surrounded by a whirlwind of accusations that largely boil down to Costner demanding less time on set and “Yellowstone” mastermind Taylor Sheridan not wanting to play, leading to a schism and Costner’s firing.

Why was Costner so eager to cut back on his ‘Yellowstone’ commitments? Because he had a hugely ambitious vision for a four-part Western epic film series called “Horizon,” which he would co-write, direct and star in – and eventually partially finance himself. After a mixed debut at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, the first film has premiered to audiences nationwide. But will “Yellowstone” fans thirsty for more Western drama from Costner be pleased with this three-hour-plus epic?

Unfortunately, the first of these films isn’t just a commercial fiasco; it’s a complete storytelling flop from top to bottom, an incredible mistake in understanding what interests the audience. Considering all the sacrifices Costner made to bring his vision to the big screen, it’s baffling that the final product is so bland, devoid of the spark Sheridan can conjure from “Yellowstone” and its spinoffs every week.

Lest you think this was a bad faith argument, I wanted nothing more than to be swept away by “Horizon.” When I arrived at the first preview screening on Thursday at my local theater in Queens, New York, there were eight other audience members spread throughout the enormous auditorium. They all had to be fans of Costner, “Yellowstone” or Westerns in general, given the mixed reviews and mind-bending running time. Still, one by one, the audience filtered out, leaving me as the only adventurer who stuck around for the film’s final montage, “Coming up in Part 2.”

During the final hour of “Horizon,” a man sitting several rows behind me descended the stairs in the darkened theater, spilled his half-full bucket of popcorn halfway through, reached down to pick it up — only to be interrupted when he let out a buzzer. sweetie. At this point he left the bucket behind and hurried to the door. If only “Horizon” could match that level of dense storytelling and humor, with a memorable character facing challenging odds.

If Costner had stuck to the following tenets that Sheridan ingrained into the DNA of “Yellowstone,” “Horizon” might not have failed.

A proper scope of storytelling

At its core, “Yellowstone” is a simple soap opera: The Dutton family owns the largest ranch in Montana, and they’re always trying to keep their property out of the hands of greedy outsiders — even as they fight among themselves for control. It’s simple and effective, yet “Horizon” — hoping to be epic – seems to want to tell the story of every person who headed west after the Civil War in search of fame and fortune. This results in far too many characters being introduced, and it’s hard to speak to anyone when you’re constantly shuffling around and meeting new people. Some of the backstories are interesting, some are not, and yet everyone gives long speeches about the new frontier. The stories are then interwoven, creating an endless sprawl. As my colleague Owen Gleiberman noted in a column about the film, this pacing could work in a television series, but when a movie has so much homework without getting into the right stuff, it’s a fatal flaw. After all, Costner doesn’t even show up in his own epic for AN HOUR!

The ebb and flow of great acting

For an actor as naturalistic as Costner, his direction of the actors in “Horizon” is astonishing. A constellation of great leads and character performers: Jamie Campbell Bower! Jena Malone! Jeff Fahey! Luke Wilson! – drift in and out, seemingly instructed to choose an accent and cadence and just stick to it. Despite the national melting pot, the scenes are reminiscent of regional performances of “Our City,” where everyone is just trying to steal the spotlight from each other, dialect be damned. Meanwhile, the leads of “Yellowstone” quickly mastered the perfect interplay with each other, bouncing off friends, lovers, enemies and family members with ease and acid tongues.

Create a world where you feel like you are alive

Apart from the beautiful natural backgrounds, the artifice of “Horizon” does not allow for a moment of lived authenticity. Garments look fresh and never worn, despite the hard lives of all the characters – maybe they just buy from the closet? Eyebrows, teeth and styling look suspiciously modern, as if this project isn’t worth players getting a haircut. And Costner is wearing the weirdest big blue hat you’ve ever seen on the collection. Meanwhile, part of the appeal of “Yellowstone” is that it seems like a look into the very real (albeit very wealthy) lives of those who run huge ranches, as confirmed when I interviewed a real ranch matriarch, who confirmed that the look matched with reality.

Bring the drama!

Apart from the overbearing score, ‘Horizon’ is as dramatically inert as a rolling tumbleweed. Sure, a few people die and there are some gunfights, but these moments are few and far between among countless scenes of character introductions. The bullets don’t hit the audience too deeply either, because despite their endless chatter, we don’t know much about the travelers beyond their most healing aspirations for going West: money, a chance to start over, looking for love , etc. Meanwhile, Sheridan is a master of tension and release in both his films and TV shows, and he knows that getting into the shoes of a character in peril is the result of economical screenwriting and high stakes – both of which are lacking here.

Ultimately, it’s puzzling to be presented with a passion project so devoid of real passion. With a low CinemaScore of B-, it looks like Costner has an uphill battle getting audiences back in the saddle for Part 2 – let alone getting the money to finish Part 3 and get Part 4 off the ground .

Maybe he should talk to the Dutton family to see if they want to use some of their fortune to invest in the arts.