"The Jack Bull" with John Cusak and John Goodman (1999)

John Cusak plays rancher Myrl Redding in this story based on true events. It is a story of the search for justice; justice denied; and then a hard lesson. When no one is willing to back up; when no one is willing to compromise; the results can never be satisfactory.

Mryl is a proud and hard-working rancher. He raises some of the finest horses in Wyoming. When he takes a group of his horses; along with his hired hands; on a trip to complete a sale, he finds himself caught in a struggle with the wealthiest landowner in the territory of Wyoming; which is poised to become a state. But for the time being it is still a lawless place; which works in the favor of Henry Ballard, played by L.Q. Jones.

Ballard has erected a toll gate on the only path to the markets in the rest of the territory. He demands $10 per person to cross his land. There are no roads. When Myrl leaves 2 horses as collateral for the cash he does not have, a chain of events is unleashed, and impacting both men in ways they could never have foreseen.

Myrl returns to retrieve his horses, only to find them half-starved and abused beyond recognition. He tells Ballard that he has 2 weeks to nurse the horses back to health or pay the value of the animals. Ballard laughs and drives him off.  This leaves Myrl with no other choice than to seek redress in the courts. But the territorial judge is in the pocket of Ballard and so nothing is done to make Myrl whole.

Myrl now intends to bring a petition for statehood directly to the state capitol, where he intends to present it to the Governor. His wife Cora, played by Miranda Otto, takes the petition instead. She is accompanied by Myrl’s best man. But when they arrive at the capitol Ballard’s men are waiting.

They beat the hired hand and frighten the horses, causing Cora to be run over by a wagon. She dies on the journey home. Myrl has now been pushed beyond all reason and decides to take revenge. During the ensuing violence another man’s wife is killed and property damaged. The local judge is such a joke that another Judge is sent into the territory to stage a trial of both men. Their actions have now impacted others who were not involved in the original argument.

Judge Tolliver, played by John Goodman, is a tough and fair man. He intends to deliver justice to both men. He is also a very compassionate man, but he finds fault with both.

After a short trial the judge delivers his verdict. Ballard will restore the horses to their former state. Moreover, he will do this while working in Myrl’s stable. Ballard is furious with the verdict. But the judge is not through yet. He imposes the ultimate sentence on Myrl; to be carried out after his horses have been restored.

His reasoning is simple; Myrl wanted to see justice done so badly that he was willing to break the law in pursuit of that goal. So the judge lets him live long enough to get the justice he demands; and then punishes him for his crimes against others.

This is a film about the inability to compromise; or to see beyond your own personal goals. The desire for justice; when meted out without regard for mercy or compromise; can often be just as bad as justice denied. That is a lesson which both Myrl and Ballard have to learn the hard way. Judge Tolliver has the hardest job of all; he must find a balance which addresses the transgressions of both parties; leaving little room for the mercy and compromise which both men have previously rejected.

Intense acting from all parties, along with a tightly written script, give this movie an air of authority. Originally made for television in 1999 and released on DVD in 2010, this film is eerily reminiscent of the Chinese film "The Story of Qui Ju", which was released in 1992. For a review of that film, use this link;

http://robertwilliamsofbrooklyn.blogspot.com/2012/03/story-of-qiu-ju-with-li-gong-and.html 

"Argo" with Ben Affleck and Alan Arkin (2012)

In this fast paced true life thriller, Ben Affleck plays Tony Mendez, a CIA operative who specializes in getting people out of crisis situations. In this case his assignment is to facilitate the removal of 6 American Embassy workers in Tehran during the Iranian Hostage Crisis in 1979.  Those 6 had been able to obtain shelter in the Canadian Embassy, but their presence was becoming known, making it only a matter of time until the Iranians would take them from that building.

At home the CIA and the White House are caught seriously off guard; and with no plans in the “works” to free the hostages it was time to get inventive. Calling upon friends in Hollywood, the CIA concocts a plan to film a phony movie in Iran at the time of the crisis, using phony Canadian passports to remove the hostages. John Goodman and Alan Arkin play the Hollywood Producer and Director who accompany Tony to Iran with the phony film crew. That part is relatively easy. But getting them out provides another, more desperate race against time.

Ben Affleck directed this film which is based on the actual events as they occurred. The beginning of the movie provides a brief background on just how the Iranian government fell, and why. This will be especially helpful to younger viewers who may not remember why the Iranians overthrew their government in the first place, as well as provide an insight into what kind of governments end up filling the vacuum created by violent revolutions.

It has been almost 35 years since the events depicted in this film took place. With last week’s election of a more moderate leader in Iran, let’s hope that the pendulum of democratic government is swinging back towards the center in that country, which has a strong influence on all of the other countries in the region. This was a very gripping and well-made film.

"Alabama Moon" with John Goodman and J.D. Evermore with Jim Bennett and Uriah Shelton (2009)

This may be the shortest, yet greatest, role ever undertaken by John Goodman. He is not the star. But he is the force behind this wonderful movie about a boy, Moon, played by Jim Bennett, who lives in the woods with his father, whom he calls "Paps". They have lived in the woods, just as the early settlers did, taking what they need from the land as they need it for as long as Moon can remember. They live in a hole in the ground.

"Paps", played by J.D. Evermore, is certain that "the law" is after him. No reason is ever given to the boy, who simply accepts what his father has told him to be true. His mother passed away some years earlier, and Moon does not really recall her. His only link to her is an old snapshot of her taken when he was very small, just before she died. His father has taught him to write "smoke letters", which he claims, when burned, can be received by the deceased.

When "Paps" is injured in an accident and dies, Moon finds himself alone. At the age of 12 he buries his father and continues to live in their hole. His father has taught him all the survival skills he needs; he can trap, hunt, cook and make camp wherever he finds himself. He even knows about herbs and their medicinal properties. In short, his father has taught him everything which he needs to know in order to survive outside of "civilization" except for one thing; being alone. His father's last instructions were for Moon to head towards the northwest, Montana, or even Alaska, where he felt the boy could grow up alone and unbothered.

When Moon ventures out of the woods to make good on his plan, he encounters a local deputy, Constable Sanders, played by Clint Howard, who is an evil version of Barney Fife. The Constable remands Moon to a youth facility, where the boy proceeds to lead a mass breakout. Although most of the boys return on their own, Moon, along with Hal, played by Gabriel Basso, and the sickly Kit, played by Uriah Shelton, make good on their plans to hole up in the woods until spring, when they will make their way to Alaska.

When Constable Sanders pursues the boys, he proves unequal to the task, losing them several times. Hal breaks away, heading to his father's trailer alone, while Kit and Moon remain in the woods. When Kit takes ill from the weather, Moon is forced to leave him by the side of the road, waiting with him until someone stops to help. He then takes off again.

By this time John Goodman has made his appearance as the mysterious, but good Mr. Wellington, a local attorney, who seems only to be interested in helping the boy. And that's as far as I will take you on this fantastic journey which will pull you in every direction as you watch the story unfold. This is one of the best "coming of age" films I have ever seen.

The superb acting of all three boys, alongside veteran actors John Goodman and J.D. Evermore, make this a film very well worth watching. With an excellent screenplay by James Whittaker, from the novel by Watt Key, this movie is directed with true eloquence by Tim McCanlies.