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By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
Westerns were once the dominant genre in Hollywood, peaking in the 50s and 60s, before slowly falling out of favor despite some stances in the last few decades, but there have been some stances, and mostly all, one man has worked tirelessly to bring the genre back to prominence. Kevin Costner, star and director Dances with Wolvesstar of Hatfields and McCoysand the star of the modern West Yellowstone, finally bring his passion project, Horizon: An American Sagaan epic four-part film series that sought to redefine Westerns for theaters. The problem is that the first film bombed so badly that the release of the sequel has been delayed indefinitely, but there is still hope, as Horizon now a huge hit on Netflix.
Great start
Horizon: American Saga – Chapter 1 debuted on Netflix at the beginning of January and, since then, has been part of the streamer’s top 10. The first part of the epic saga features a huge cast of characters, some of whom we don’t even see until the finale for Chapter 2, across multiple storylines yet to intersect. Chapter 1 It’s not a complete film, with none of the stories reaching anything like a conclusion, but what it is is a bold experiment in bringing the structure of television to film.
The film begins with an Apache raid on the new settlement of Horizon, which acts as a catalyst for the first two stories, which follow some survivors taking refuge in a military camp and others out for revenge. At the same time, in the less developed story, a wagon train is on its way to Horizon when it comes to the attention of the Apache, and the threat of an impending attack hangs over the settlers. Yet another story follows a young woman on the run from her abusers, while Costner, as the mysterious Hayes Ellison, finds himself wrapped up in her wake as he falls for Marigold, the lady of the night.
Each story shows potential, and some of the characters, including Ellen Jena Malone and one of her pursuers, Caleb Sykes, played by Jamie Campbell Bower (you know him as Stranger Things Vecna), stand out among the ensemble. There are some standout moments, including a tense shootout that proves Costner knows what he’s doing behind the camera, but overall, Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 There’s so much going on, it’s easy to lose track of the details, which is probably why it comes up Netflix.
We May Never See The Whole Saga
In theatres, Horizon: The American Saga – Chapter 1 bombbed, earning $38 million alongside an onslaught of mediocre reviews, with most critics and fans agreeing that the film was okay but had a lot of setup for no payoff. Originally, Chapter 2 was set to hit theaters two months after the first film debuted in June, but in early July, the second film was pulled from release, and so far, no replacement has been announced. Considering the success of the first film on Netflix, there could be a future for the series, which still has three more films to go, on the streaming network instead of theaters.
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 debuted on Max last fall, but the Warner Bros. streaming service doesn’t have Netflix’s footprint, and it’s likely that more people will watchyour film in the last week than in the last months combined. It would make sense for the streaming service to pick up the franchise, especially since Kevin Costner financed the production himself, motivated to bring his passion project to life after working on it for decades. Netflix needs content, and after spending hundreds of millions on Zach Snyder’s Rebel MoonIt is likely that Costner’s Western epic could be acquired for an amount that the streamer would consider a rounding error.
For now, if you haven’t seen Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1it’s still worth checking out on Netflix, if for no other reason than to see Kevin Costner pour his heart out on screen for three hours. At least now that it’s streaming, you can pause and take a bathroom break. And if enough people stream it, maybe one day we’ll get to see the rest of the epic.
