Wyatt Earp (DVD)

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Outstanding
Characters / Performances	Outstanding
Special Effects	Outstanding
How does it compare to similar films?	Outstanding

Advantages:	extremely accurate
Disadvantages:	early years of Wyatt Earp feel a touch rushed

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

This film is an epic western movie, based very accurately on the story of Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp. Born March 19th 1848. Wyatt would come to spend his adult years during the wildest period of the frontier. Wyatt Earp became legendary as a lawman, and his greatest feats are being the man to clean up Dodge City {One of the most violent frontier towns in the wild west} and for the Gunfight at the O.K Corral in Tombstone, Arizona. This film came out a touch later than the fantastic Tombstone starring Kurt Russel playing Wyatt Earp. However, unlike Tombstobe this is a biography of the entire life of the boy, the man, the legend. I first watched this movie in the cinema, and as soon as possible purchased it on DVD.

Wyatt Earp is a lenghty movie, but needs to be, to get as much information across as possible about the man. Initially the film starts with Wyatt Earp Played by Kevin costner, just verging on adulthood. His father is played by another fantastic actor, Gene Hackman. Here the seeds are sown for the man Wyatt would be, by his father who preaches things like nothing matters more important than blood {meaning family} and if you ever have cause to shoot down on a man, don't hesitate and shoot to kill. There is a real doctrine of take no crap, and hit hard, hit fast. Throughout his young years he tries his hand at a few jobs, including boxing referee. After a particular bout a local gunfighter lost a lot of money claiming that Wyatt made a poor decision, and as a result the gunfighter hits Wyatt. That evening Wyatts friend gets drunk and runs off his mouth that Wyatt is going to kill this man. Here Wyatt is forced to face him down and wins his first ever gunfight without firing a shot.

Perhaps things would never have happened as they did, when Wyatt goes to visit is childhood sweetheart. For it appears he is going to settle down for the rest of his life as an humble family man. After a period of dating he proposes and they wed. She becomes his ultimate first love and everything is peachy. Till the day she takes sick whilst pregnant. The doctor visits and it's not good. Soon after she dies. This is where the greatest change in Wyatt comes about and sees his demenaour change forever. For a short period whilst wallowing in self pity he has a run in with the law and ends up on the wrong side of it, and is only saved by his pa.

Who would have known at this point that one day Wyatt would become one of the greatest lawmen ever. That he would take on the first ever organised crime gang in American history with his best friend Doc Holliday, {outlaw, gambler, killer} played by Dennis Quaid. Who would have known that one of his brothers would be murdered and another crippled in an ambush.

This is a gripping story about love, hatred, friendship, honour and so much more. The film is exceptionally made, and some of the script is true to original dialogue from the day. Wyatt Earp got into many gunfights but ironically never received so much as a graze from a bullet, and he finally died of old age in Los Angeles on January 18th 1929. Another fascinating factor of this film is that one of the actors is descended from Wyatt Earp. The film is big budget with a big name cast, that give stonking performances. This film is worth buying at it's original release price, but being a few years old now you will be able to obtain a copy quite cheap.