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Reckoning (2002)
Excruciating
Perhaps the best way to view "Reckoning" is at 2X speed. Or maybe just as a series of stills. The dialog is almost inconsequential and the drawn out scenes, vignettes, transitions, establishing shots, etc., are gratuitous. Yes, it was pretty country and the cast is full of pretty people. but this western moved like a three-legged draft pony. I do like that two of the stars (one, the writer-director-editor-caterer) are stunt people. Good on them for trying to do something different. But, hey, where were the stunts? It certainly was not a drama one could sink his or her teeth into, like "The Hired Hand." So, a little more Peckinpah, a little less Hunt and Peck, please. If the lack of meaningful dialog was meant to remind us of The Man With No Nme, it did not. A less sluggish exposition might have hidden the flaws. Next time, leave the editing to people who understand pacing and I'll bet the editors will be happy to leave the stair falls to you. Oh, yeah: Where's the beef?!!