"Dead Man's Walk" (1996) TV mini-series

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Yves Simoneau

Writers (WGA):

Larry McMurtry (novel)
Larry McMurtry (teleplay) ...

Release Date:

12 May 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Western

Plot Keywords:

Expedition | Texas | Survival | Grizzly Bear | Mexican

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy. Another 2 wins

Cast

F. Murray Abraham	...	Col. Caleb Cobb
Keith Carradine	...	Bigfoot Wallace
Patricia Childress	...	Matilda Jane 'Mattie' Roberts
Brian Dennehy	...	Maj. Randall Chevallie
Edward James Olmos	...	Capt. Salazar
Eric Schweig	...	Buffalo Hump
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Shadrach
David Arquette	...	Augustus McCrae
Jonny Lee Miller	...	Woodrow F. Call
Ray McKinnon	...	Long Bill Coleman
Jennifer Garner	...	Clara Forsythe
Tim Blake Nelson	...	Johnny Carthage
Alastair Duncan	...	Capt. Billy Falconer
Brad Greenquist
Kieran Mulroney	...	Jimmy Tweed

Also Known As:

"Larry McMurtry's Dead Man's Walk"

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence and thematic elements involving the frontier experience.

Runtime:

272 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Finland:K-11 | Australia:PG | Germany:12 | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Alpine, Texas, USA

Company:

De Passe Entertainment

Trivia:

The expedition that this film centers around, while containing fictional characters, is based on a real expedition ordered by President of Texas Mirabeau Lamar to annex New Mexico to the Republic of Texas in 1841. The use of black and white beans to decide who to execute and who to spare is borrowed the Mier expedition, which took place the following year.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: This film is set in 1841 but presents Charles Goodnight as an adult. Goodnight was born in 1836, making him only a child at the time.

Quotes:

[the rangers dig side-by-side graves for two of their dead comrades]
Long Bill Coleman: Josh and Zeke were pards. I don't guess they'll mind bunking together in the hereafter.
Bigfoot Wallace: If anybody knows a good scripture, let 'em say it. We got to skedaddle. I don't fancy another fight with Buffalo Hump.
Long Bill Coleman: There's that scripture about them green pastures...
Bigfoot Wallace: So say it then, Bill!
Long Bill Coleman: Well... them there's green pastures... that's all I recall.

Movie Connections:

Followed by "Comanche Moon" (2008)

Thrilling Adaptation of Larry McMurtry book

This is a great adaptation of the Larry McMurtry novel. The script follows the novel very closely, which is the number one requirement of any film adaptation of McMurtry's work. McMurtry's dialogue compels readers to fall in love with the characters, so it must be preserved. David Arquette and Jonny Lee Miller are very believable as young versions of Gus McCrae and Woodrow McCall. Arquette has even picked up some of the physical mannerisms that Robert Duvall used earlier in Lonesome Dove. Patricia Childress really captures the role of the tender-hearted young prostitute Mattie Roberts. Eric Schweig is chilling as the dangerous Comanche Chief Buffalo Hump, and the stunt work by Judson Keith Linn when doubling for Schweig is fantastic. The sequence where he rides down one of the Texas Rangers and scalps him from horseback is thrilling and terrifying. An equally terrifying nighttime sequence involves Buffalo Hump chasing down Gus on foot during a lightning storm and spearing him with his lance. The cast is full of noted character actors including Brian Dennehy, Keith Carradine, Harry Dean Stanton, F. Murray Abraham, and Edward James Olmos. Olmos is particularly effective as Mexican Army Captain Salazar. I love this mini-series, but it should not be compared to Lonesome Dove. Every adaptation of McMurtry books is different, using different casts, etc. Don't compare them, just enjoy them!