Horizon - An American Saga (Chapter 1)
Critics ridiculed Costner for financing this ambitious four film-project with his own money and gleefully pronounced it a flop, called it tedious and boring, “with a scattershot plot which would have better be told as a tv series”.
Now, the second film, already finished, has been postponed, only a few scenes of the third film were shot, and Costner apparently is working next on another project, with “Horizon” on hold. Although, Costner, I’m sure will find a way to complete the remaining two films anyway.
And he should.
Yes, the whole measure of this enterprise will only be discovered when looked at in context of all the four movies. Yes, the idea of doing this as three-hour long movies on the big screen was ambitious to say the least, probably foolish because in today’s cinema climate there was no way the first film could succeed. Yes, it does speak of Costner´s ego to do this anyway, and maybe he did really think that he could bring in all the millions of people who watched him in “Yellowstone”.
But why are people so full of schadenfreude when dreamers like Costner or this year also maestro Coppola invest not only their creative power but also their money to bring their visions to the screen? They only had to do this because the studios don’t finance films anymore which cannot be pre-sold via IP. In fact, most of those movies which are being hailed as classics today would not get the green light now. This is not a development anyone who loves cinema should shrug off or laugh at. This is a devastating blow to the art form and to the power of communication great movies can achieve. Without them we all are poorer.
But hey, you might say, what if those personal visions just aren’t, you know… good?
I haven’t seen “Megalopolis” yet (but intend to do so).
However, “Horizon - Chapter 1”, is a magnificent movie. It is about the way America developed, through a terribly violent and unjust clash of the human beings who were born there and those who came from the other side of the ocean, trying to make a fresh and promising start here. The film also shows how diverse the intentions of everybody involved were. There is no good vs evil, but a lot of conflicting emotions which made it impossible for everybody to get along and find common ground.
“Horizon” is not a classic Western, although it uses iconic images and plot ideas. It is rather a film about today by being set in the past, showing history as a mirror to all the basic conflicts which kept on haunting humanity up to this day.
Is it boring? Not at all. Every scene is loaded with conflict and tension, propelling the story threads forward. And since this is only part one, of course, no conflict gets solved. This is a film with an open ending, a continuing story, and that’s what it had to be.
Is the story scattershot and unfocused? No, it is a multi-perspective narrative which follows different people. Maybe the poster and also the trailer misled people to think that Costner has the leading role. He hasn’t. He is part of the ensemble, and so far, only a few storylines have interconnected. They probably will do so even more in the upcoming installments.
Is that a problem? Not for me. Despite being three hours long I was hooked from the beginning and invested in every scene. Time flew by so fast I was actually sad it ended. I could have easily stayed and watched the next film.
Maybe people did expect a clear one hero-narrative like “Dances With Wolves”. But “Horizon” is completely different. It is also very raw, uncompromising, unflinching in its depiction of human beings in crises, and make no mistake: living in that time was an ongoing crisis. Yet, people earned moments of decency and hope, even if they had to do anything for survival. Some people found it easier to give in to hate and cruelty, and those who were unprepared for it had to suffer the consequences which came abruptly and without any warning.
Yesterday I pontificated about the audiences worldwide which turned the cynicism of “Deadpool and Wolverine” into a mega hit. Today I rest my case with the lack of empathy and interest in the past which left “Horizon” abandoned at the box office.
In a better world both fates would have been switched.