All screenplays on the simplyscripts.com and simplyscripts.net domain are copyrighted to their respective authors. All rights reserved. This screenplaymay not be used or reproduced for any purpose including educational purposes without the expressed written permission of the author.
First time director, S. Craig Zahler, wrote a script distinctive enough to persuade Kurt Russell to appear in it, and then managed to take his script and create a hybrid western/cannibal film that builds slowly to a shocking climax.
SPOILERS AHEAD Basic story line A cowboy is arrested by Sheriff Kurt Russel on suspicion of robbery, maybe worse... what they don't know is that he's also recently desecrated that the sacred burial ground of a cannibal can of Red Indians... and they want to inflict their own justice!
When they swoop in the night to kidnap the criminal they also take a young nurse and a deputy too. So Russell, his ageing 'spare' deputy, the local hero and the nurses' husband set off to rescue them from the savages.
Up to now we are dealing with a well made, but fairly 'standard' western, great tone and the cast is great... but it doesn't prepare you for what happens in the last half an hour.
The climax sees our heroes decimated by the cannibals, captured and graphically brutalised - but not quite down and out yet.
The sequences in the cannibal's cave owes more to Deodato's Cannibal Holocaust than John Ford's The Searchers, with the cannibal clan revealed as a freakshow of inbred psychopaths with no regard for human life.
All in all a surprising film, well made and well acted... I'll be looking out for what Zahler does next.
Not big into horror, but I do like the western setting and Kurt Russell rarely puts in a bad performance. The one trailer i watched didn't quite seem to do the idea justice -- seemed lacking... On the other hand 89% on R.T speaks of good things. I'll be checking this one out.
Cheers Anthony.
My short scripts can be found here on my new & improved budget website:
The violence is shocking and will impact even the most hardened of horror film watchers. but the dialogue and the performances of the actors is where this film really shines.
I thought the script was one of the weaker westerns that Craig S Zahler's written (especially compared to his two absolutely brilliant western novels; two novels which I am still unable to fathom why they have not been adapted to the screen), but everything that I've read makes it seem like he's taken some of the weaker aspects of the script (the slow second act and the tonally distinct third act) and turned them into the strongest aspects of the film.
Kurt Russell stars in this gritty western that follows a small (4 man) posse as they try to retrieve some townsfolk kidnapped by Indian savages. Some very gruesome scenes that suit the period. Perhaps a little slow in places, but it's well worth the wait.
For the first time since Unforgiven, I feel as though I've watched a realistic western. Something that could actually have happened and I loved it. I saw The Hateful Eight recently, but this is better than that. With Tarantino, he deals in history too, but you always know that you're watching a film. None of it could ever have been real.
The language in this was very well researched. So much so, that it seems the writer is an expert on this period of history. I love westerns and I like writing them, having written two (albeit cross-genre) myself, and I am jealous. I'd love to have this writer go over my scripts and improve the language.
A simple, straightforward storyline, but if you like Westerns then you should love this. Unless you like fake westerns with bullshit characters, of course.
I'll have to give this a look - my wife loves Kurt Russel (eye candy for her).
I will admit that Blazing Saddles has kind of fok'd up westerns for me - every time they pan in to the small town by synapses connect and "There was a town called Rockridge..." startsplaying in my brain.
I did love Unforgiven (a near perfect movie) as well as Tombstone - so maybe there is hope for me.
Finally got around to seeing this. Not bad, the attention to authenticity was refreshing, Zahler certainly knows the period. I’d echo Demento -- for me the ending didn’t do justice to the build-up. Bit of an anti-climax, perhaps even a cop out given the potential. Granted, Deputy Nick’s scene in the cave was brutal; but after that the sense of dread and tension seemed to evaporate. I guess I was expecting a far darker ending -- actually surprised as to how ‘easy’ it was for the characters to escape.
Not to say I didn’t enjoy it -- more entertaining than most. Hopefully it leads to Zahler getting more of his work into production. Halfway through ‘Wraiths of a Broken Land’ -- i'd be interested to see this make it to the screen. I'd guess the budget for Bone Tomahawk made it more accessible.
Script link worked for me -- though only on my phone and even now I’m not sure exactly how I downloaded it, just found the PDF a day later…
My short scripts can be found here on my new & improved budget website:
The violence is shocking and will impact even the most hardened of horror film watchers. but the dialogue and the performances of the actors is where this film really shines.
highly recommended.
From the DVD cover I expected this to be trash. The title didn't exactly inspire either. It was a film I'd never heard of until I heard it might be good by my better half. She wasn't exactly impressed by my comment 'that will suck big balls'.
The cast wasn't exactly up there either. Kurt Russell hasn't bettered his turn in The Thing. He's pretty good, but usually ends up in movies beneath him.
Matthew Fox did well as Jack in Lost. Pity all that went well pear shaped at the end. Some of Lost was truly outstanding. I can't say I'd seen him anything decent since then.
I've always liked Patrick Wilson. His TV stuff is usually good, like Fargo. But there's not many outstanding films with him in. I liked Watchmen, but it doesn't really stand up to subsequent viewings. There's a little known film called Little Children he's in with Kate Winslet. It was good, but I really don't want to see it again anytime soon.
So my hopes were low. I was surprised. I was hooked from the very start until the very end. There's not many times I can say that about a film like this.
The story doesn't let up or let you down.
It gets a bit graphic in parts as the quote above suggests, but considering the nature of the story this was to be expected. Hardened horror fans will love it.
I think I preferred Kurt Russell in this than in The Hateful Eight. Matthew Fox was also rather good here. So was Wilson and the rest of them.
I really liked it. Impressive.
Also impressive is they shot it in 21 days. A first time director from his own script and on a reasonably small budget. I wish I could do that.
Huh... I watched most of Lost (all but the last season which I'm saving for a rainy day...) and had no idea that was Matthew Fox -- his character 'Brooder' just kind of turns up and tags along -- not in a bad way. Well I'll be...
My short scripts can be found here on my new & improved budget website: