Silverado (1985)

A misfit bunch of friends come together to right the injustices which exist in a small town.

Director:

Lawrence Kasdan

Writers:

Lawrence Kasdan, Mark Kasdan

Stars:

Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Kevin Costner

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kevin Kline	...	Paden
Scott Glenn	...	Emmett
Kevin Costner	...	Jake
Danny Glover	...	Mal
Marvin J. McIntyre	...	Clerk
Brad Williams	...	Trooper
Sheb Wooley	...	Cavalry Sergeant
Jon Kasdan	...	Boy at Outpost
John Cleese	...	Sheriff Langston
Todd Allen	...	Deputy Kern
Kenny Call	...	Deputy Block
Bill Thurman	...	Carter
Meg Kasdan	...	Barmaid
Dick Durock	...	Bar Fighter
Gene Hartline	...	Bar Fighter

Storyline

In 1880, four men travel together to the city of Silverado. They come across with many dangers before they finally engage the "bad guys" and bring peace and equality back to the city.

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Plot Keywords:

small town | 1880s | action hero | wild west | gun fu | 

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Taglines:

A dangerous place, in a lawless time... 'Til four friends risked all to make things right.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Western

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 July 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Outlaws

Filming Locations:

Abiquiu, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$26,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$33,200,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Delphi III Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director and producer Lawrence Kasdan cast two of his children and his wife in small roles in the film. His brother and co-writer Mark Kasdan also had a small role as a doctor that was filmed but ended up on the cutting room floor.

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Goofs

The movie is set in the early 1880s. When the settlers open their cash box to show Baxter and Hawley the money they've been promised to escort the settlers to Silverado, we see the 1886 Martha Washington $1 silver certificate, the 1917 George Washington $1 legal tender note, the 1907 (or 1922) Michael Hillegas $10 gold certificate, and the 1907 Andrew Jackson $5 legal tender note. The 1917 Washington $1 is distinguishable from other issues by two indicators: the small red seal on the left, and the serial number below the seal, which is not in a dark gray box. The 1907 Jackson $5 is distinguishable from other issues by two indicators: the small red seal on the right, and the small red Roman Numeral V on the left. The 1907 (or 1922) Michael Hillegas $10 gold certificate is distinguishable from the 1922 Ulysses Grant $50 gold certificate by the shape of the white shirt in the portrait at center, and by the lower-right corner border around the encircled number.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[Emmett saves Paden's life with a sip of water from his canteen after discovering him abandoned and baking in the desert]
Paden: Pleased to meet you.

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Connections

Referenced in Siskel & Ebert: Bad Girls/The Inkwell/Naked in New York/Brainscan/Surviving the Game (1994)

User Reviews

"Let's get 'em!"

That one line from Jake (Kevin Costner) as he, Paden (Kevin Kline), Emmett (Scott Glenn), and Mal (Danny Glover) are riding into town for the last battle against a corrupt sheriff (Brian Dennehy) exemplifies everything that is great about 'Silverado'. It's a high-spirited adventure that is fun, does not take itself too seriously (well, maybe a little), and cheerfully reenacts Western clichés. It's the kind of movie where you can tell the actors had fun making it, and you have fun too.

The acting is uniformly excellent. Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, and Danny Glover all bring quiet dignity as well as low-key humor to their roles, but it's Kevin Costner who impressed me the most. As Glenn's cocky young brother, Costner doesn't even bother to contain his glee at being in a Western. He gives the most fun performance in the movie, and it's good to see a younger Costner not taking himself nearly as seriously as he does now. The supporting cast has some nice players: John Cleese shows up as a fair-minded sheriff who seems to have walked over from a Monty Python skit; Academy Award-winner Linda Hunt ('The Year Of Living Dangerously') steals scenes as a strong-willed bar owner who Kevin Kline befriends; and Brian Dennehy is thoroughly slimy as the villain.

The action is fun, and director Lawrence Kasdan shows a gift for this material (granted, he was the person who wrote 'Raiders of the Lost Ark'), and the screenplay (also by Kasdan) is joyous in the way it resurrects the Western. The movie also has one of the best action scores I've ever heard by Bruce Broughton, and I was humming the title theme as the movie concluded.

'Silverado' is a shining example of the Western genre, and it stands as one of the greatest pure entertainment Westerns ever made.