- Actors: Robert Duvall, Thomas Haden Church, Greta Scacchi, Gwendoline Yeo, Chris Mulkey
- Format: AC-3, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
- Language English
- Subtitles: English
- Region: Region 1 (US and Canada DVD formats.)
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9 - 1.78:1
- Number of discs: 1
- Classification: Unrated (US MPAA rating. See details.)
- Studio: Sony Pictures
- DVD Release Date: 30 Sep 2008
- Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B001CY5MZG
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 189,056 in Film & TV (See Top 100 in Film & TV)
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Reviews
Amazon.com
The lives of two stoic cowboys and five abused Chinese women become intertwined in Walter Hill's sprawling mini-series Broken Trail. Print Ritter (Academy Award winner Robert Duvall) and his nephew Tom Harte (Thomas Haden Church, Sideways) agree to deliver a herd of 500 horses from Oregon to Wyoming. Along the way, they rescue the young women--most of them still just girls--who're being transported to a brothel to have their virginity auctioned off. When the madam sees she is about to lose the girls, she screams at Tom, "What about my property?" He shouts back, "That's the price of being a capitalist, lady." Unable to overcome the language barrier, Print assigns numbers to the girls. Number Three, Sun Foy (Gwendoline Yeo, Desperate Housewives) is the most fearless and perceptive of them. Though the others don't want to be called Number Four--an unlucky numeral in their homeland--Ye Fung (Olivia Cheng), the most tragic of the group, doesn't care. Targeted for her beauty, she finds herself unable to overcome the trauma. The number suits her, in her mind. Along the way, Print and Tom rescue Nola Johns (Greta Scacchi), the proverbial hooker with the heart of gold, who was forced into prostitution after her husband died.
The cinematography is gorgeous as the camera sweeps over the lush landscape (the Canadian Rockies subbing in for Wild West of the late 1800s) and Hill does a formidable job of pacing this three-hour drama with just the right balance of dialogue and action. For Duvall, Broken Trail is the last piece to his Western trilogy, which started with the mini-series Lonesome Dove followed by the feature film Open Range. He is instantly likeable as a father figure and the viewer never doubts that his intention for the girls is honourable. As for Haden Church, he has never been as appealing as he is in this role. Gruff and flawed, he softens when he exchanges shy glances with Sun Foy. The trek is long and hard and the unlikely band of travellers will face much hardship. If not as satisfying as the rich, detailed Lonesome Dove, Broken Trail makes up for it with a wonderful storyline and some fine acting by all involved. As for the conclusion, it may surprise some viewers who are expecting a more traditional version of the happy ending.--Jae-Ha Kim, Amazon.com
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
97 of 100 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Magnificent Emmy Award Winner bears comparison with the epic Lonesome Dove- it is a good deal tighter than Dove but without losing it's sense of scale and no skimping on the depth of the main characters.
Robert Duvall plays Print Ritter who together with his estranged nephew Tom Harte(Thomas Haden Church)set out to transport 500 mustang to Wyoming.
However on the way they pick up a group of chinese women bound for a life of prostitution in a mining town,a down on her luck whore(Greta Scacchi) and the attentions of a recently released killer who has a score to settle with the whore.
Stunningly shot on incredibly beautiful locations,this is a wonderful piece of work.Duvall and Church are exceptional,Scacchi does well in a slightly underwritten role and Hill's direction is both fluid and delicate with the characters being well served by Alan Geoffrion's subtle and observant screenplay.Naturally the action is handled superbly,terse and violent as befits its landscape, by a master and sequences of the horses are amazing especially when one falls over in shot.
Essential Viewing
Robert Duvall plays Print Ritter who together with his estranged nephew Tom Harte(Thomas Haden Church)set out to transport 500 mustang to Wyoming.
However on the way they pick up a group of chinese women bound for a life of prostitution in a mining town,a down on her luck whore(Greta Scacchi) and the attentions of a recently released killer who has a score to settle with the whore.
Stunningly shot on incredibly beautiful locations,this is a wonderful piece of work.Duvall and Church are exceptional,Scacchi does well in a slightly underwritten role and Hill's direction is both fluid and delicate with the characters being well served by Alan Geoffrion's subtle and observant screenplay.Naturally the action is handled superbly,terse and violent as befits its landscape, by a master and sequences of the horses are amazing especially when one falls over in shot.
Essential Viewing
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I watched this film on AMC. This is AMC cable network's first original production starring Robert Duvall and Thomas Haden Church. It is a fictional story that everyone will want to watch. The background for this movie is based on historical fact of the time. I knew I was going to watch this western as soon as I read that Robert Duvall was involved in the project.
This movie takes place during the late 1800s. It starts with two horse wranglers played by Duvall and Church. Duvall's character, Print Ritter, is Church's uncle. They decide too wrangle horses and sell them to the British Empire who needed them for the Boer War. In the movie we follow this magnificent heard of horses as they are driven east across beautiful country. During the drive they run into five Chinese women who were being kidnapped from the West Coast and brought to the interior west to serve as prostitutes. The story of our horse drive and the story of five Chinese women become intertwined.
What makes this western special is we see the personal growth of Print Ritter from lonesome cowboy to father figure. And what makes this western unique is we see the story from the view of the female characters. Though the movie did not end exactly as I expected, it was close, yet seemed more real.
This is a must see movie. The story line, acting, scenery, background are all top notch. It was hard for me to believe that this was not very large big screen production.
This movie takes place during the late 1800s. It starts with two horse wranglers played by Duvall and Church. Duvall's character, Print Ritter, is Church's uncle. They decide too wrangle horses and sell them to the British Empire who needed them for the Boer War. In the movie we follow this magnificent heard of horses as they are driven east across beautiful country. During the drive they run into five Chinese women who were being kidnapped from the West Coast and brought to the interior west to serve as prostitutes. The story of our horse drive and the story of five Chinese women become intertwined.
What makes this western special is we see the personal growth of Print Ritter from lonesome cowboy to father figure. And what makes this western unique is we see the story from the view of the female characters. Though the movie did not end exactly as I expected, it was close, yet seemed more real.
This is a must see movie. The story line, acting, scenery, background are all top notch. It was hard for me to believe that this was not very large big screen production.
28 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I stumbled upon this two part television western while looking at other modern westerns on Amazon and noticing the low price and positive reviews, i decided to take a chance. Unlike the other reviewers, i had not seen Lonesome Dove and was not familiar with Walter Hill, but i am very glad that i took the chance on this.
The story of Uncle and Nephew travelling across the old west while taking care of five Chinese girls who would be sold into prostitution is exceptionally well told. Other characters that they interact with along the way such as a caring prostitute and a vicious ex-convict out for revenge enrich the story. The two main characters in particular though are tremendous. Robert Duvall and Thomas Haden Church both give great career performances, one as the wise and caring old man and the other as the flawed but ultimately well-meaning individual who will come good in the end.
Other reviewers have commented on the cinematography, and i would have to agree that it looks goregeous. The landsacpes add so much to the mood of film and show what can be achieved when you use a setting like that right.
If like me you had never heard of Broken Trail before, i would stongly reccomend that you give it a try, especially if you can get it at a low price.
The story of Uncle and Nephew travelling across the old west while taking care of five Chinese girls who would be sold into prostitution is exceptionally well told. Other characters that they interact with along the way such as a caring prostitute and a vicious ex-convict out for revenge enrich the story. The two main characters in particular though are tremendous. Robert Duvall and Thomas Haden Church both give great career performances, one as the wise and caring old man and the other as the flawed but ultimately well-meaning individual who will come good in the end.
Other reviewers have commented on the cinematography, and i would have to agree that it looks goregeous. The landsacpes add so much to the mood of film and show what can be achieved when you use a setting like that right.
If like me you had never heard of Broken Trail before, i would stongly reccomend that you give it a try, especially if you can get it at a low price.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Watch it.
A very good series. Enjoyed it. Anything with Robert Duval in it is worth watching. I have always thought that he is a very underated actor. Read more
Published 7 days ago by Panther
BROKEN TRAIL
I always think that if a Western film has Robert Duvall in it , then it's going to be pretty good and so it is with this one, a slightly different story line to the usual, an Uncle... Read more
Published 1 month ago by R. Lacey
DVD Broken Trail
Very close to being superb, in my opinion - but then tastes can vary. It is gritty, well acted and a long way short of containing endless mindless violence. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Ewan Macdonald
A Triumph of Good over Evil
I have read many of the other reviews and have to say that I cannot understand any of those that put this at less than four stars. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Ms. Adrienne May
Brilliant movie that tells it as it was!
Broken Trail, says Rober Duvall is one of a Trilogy of Western movies that he is proud to be associated with that tells how life really was for people in the mid to late 19th... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Patrick H. Williams
Long Trail but worth the jouney.
Never got around to seeing this on it's release, but caught up with it more recently and glad I did. Read more
Published 12 months ago by J. W. Brown
Classic western
This is, without doubt, a classic western, it is up there with Tombstone, Open Range and dare I say it, The Searchers. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Paul A. Mclean
A Glorious Western
One of Walter Hill's best films, which was superbly acted and i thought that Robert Duvall's performance was outstanding, eclipsing that of 'Lonesome Dove' and 'Open Range'. Read more
Published 15 months ago by B. D. Compton
One of the best westerns i ever seen.
One of the best westerns i ever seen. It,s a must to buy. The picture quality it,s very good and Robert Duvall deserve an Oscar from his acting. Very Good Walter Hill.
Published 17 months ago by Jose Antonio Goncalves
Broken trail
I enjoyed this film, did not realise it was a true story. The acting was great, although a bit slow at times, still made intersting watching
Published 19 months ago by Mrs. D. P. Hay
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