Filmmakers self-funding their passion projects has become more common recently since the major Hollywood studios have never been more allergic to supporting ambitious visions. Following right behind Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis is actor-turned-director Kevin Costner with Horizon: An American Saga, a four-part epic Western. Clocking in at 3 hours, Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 is just the beginning of this daring adventure. The first part will premiere in theaters on June 28, 2024 thanks to distributor Warner Bros., who will also release Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2 on August 16, 2024. Yes, you read that right: the first two chapters are both hitting theaters this summer.
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 3 has already begun shooting as well, but it’s notably without a distributor as Warner Bros. is waiting for the box office return of the first two films. With Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 4 also in early development, writer-director Kevin Costner has been knocking on every financier’s door this year, searching for producing partners to balance his books. Per his own words, the former Yellowstone star has taken $38 million out of his own pocket on Horizon: An American Saga, which included him mortgaging one of his own luxurious estates to finance the $100 million budget for the first two chapters. To his benefit, at least, Costner has been developing this concept for roughly 30 years. Furthermore, all of the scripts, co-written by screenwriter Jon Baird, have been reportedly locked and ready to go for over a decade.
The year is 1859 in San Pedro Valley, Arizona. The Western Front is boiling in the lead-up to the American Civil War. San Pedro Valley is where everything begins and ends in Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, as the narrative strands are seemingly set up to have all the characters end up in this one location in the next film. We find ourselves in a settlement named “Horizon,” which is promised to be a great, upcoming plot of land for White Christians to settle in. However, the first thing we see happen in Horizon is a man being brutally murdered by Apache warriors who want to get rid of all settlers on their native grounds. Flash forward some years, and despite the Apaches’ efforts, hundreds of new settlers have made Horizon their new home.
A blood-soaked massacre ensues one night as the natives, led by the young yet ruthless Pionsenay (Owen Crow Shoe), seek to destroy the fictitious town and everyone in their way. The next day, the Union Army arrives to inspect the damage and interrogate the survivors. First Lt. Trent Gephardt (Sam Worthington) is in charge and informs the so-called locals of Horizon that it was never their land to begin with. The reason for the attack comes from the simple fact that Horizon is situated on an Apache river crossing. Frustrated and shocked by Gephardt’s assessment, the locals go their separate ways. Some go off seeking revenge, while others, like Frances Kittredge (Sienna Miller) and her daughter Lizzie (Georgia MacPhail), follow the Union Army to safety.
Kevin Costner finally appears about an hour into Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 as Hayes Ellison, a horse trader. He meets Marigold (Abbey Lee), a sex worker, upon arriving in a Wyoming Territory town. Trouble soon catches up to the pair as a gunslinger named Caleb Sykes (Jamie Campbell Bower) ambushes them near Marigold’s house. He mysteriously seeks the child Marigold is looking after, prompting a classic duel between Hayes and Caleb. The final storyline of this first film introduces Matthew Van Weyden (Luke Wilson), the leader of a wagon train heading for Horizon from Montana territory. Along the way, Matthew runs into trouble with passengers misbehaving and natives sending out scouts to watch over his wagons. No matter the subplot or storyline, danger lurks at every corner in Costner’s epic Western.
The plot description above barely covers the sheer extent of the movie, there is so much more packed in its three-hour runtime. Having said that, to its own dismay, this truly operates like a first chapter. Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 is inconclusive in the way that it ends, and the links between its many storylines remain vague. Kevin Costner’s vision is certainly ambitious in scale. But with Chapter 1 being so unresolved across its 3 hours, the entire Horizon: An American Saga project seems more suited for the mini-series format (for now). We are introduced to so many characters and their individual subplots, some not being nearly as interesting as others. Similarly, certain segments are far more tame than others. The pacing can be mixed at best as we go from following two naive settlers on a slow-moving bandwagon to being thrown in the middle of intense showdowns.
It should also be said that the indigenous perspective is included more as a balancing act between all the plot lines. While their presence is historically accurate, their role in the grand story isn’t as significant as it could be. This does feel like a missed opportunity given that Native American representation has come a long way in recent years, Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon being an example. Moving on to another rather disappointing aspect, Kevin Costner is, unselfishly, not featured enough in Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 despite him being one of the huge selling points for viewers. Costner plays the Clint Eastwood-type hero to great effect, making his absence all the more frustrating. Hayes being at the forefront of more thrilling stand-offs and battles could have easily boosted this first movie’s engagement.
The other two standouts in Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 are the Sykes brothers, who are on a mission to hunt down the woman who shot their father, Ellen (Jena Malone). Jon Beavers (Animal Kingdom) is an imposing presence as Junior Sykes, while Jamie Campbell Bower (Stranger Things) delivers a slippery, unpredictable antagonist in Caleb. Most of the other characters in this first part are forgettable, barring a few well-performed scenes by Luke Wilson (Stargirl). There is simply too much going on narrative-wise to make any meaningful connections to most of the cast. This is a shame when considering the talent Kevin Costner has assembled, Michael Rooker, Isabelle Fuhrman, and Thomas Haden Church just being a few more notable names from the ensemble.
Courtesy of Warner Bros.
Kevin Costner has dabbled in directing before, with his debut Dances with Wolves being his most acclaimed work. But his previous two features, The Postman and Open Range, the last of which was released 21 years ago, left much to be desired. Costner’s sheer dedication to creating a series of Westerns, an anomaly in modern Hollywood, is undoubtedly a daring and admirable feat. Can he pull it off with 3 more movies in this new saga still to go? More importantly, will audiences still want to see more? We’ll surely have a better idea after the release of Chapter 2 later this year. With this first chapter, though, Costner has crafted a meandering 3-hour genre picture that is both profound and stern in depicting the ongoing fights between Native Americans and settlers in the 19th century.
The vast plains of America are beautifully captured in typical Western fashion by cinematographer J. Michael Muro (Crash). The camera work is exactly what’s expected from a traditional Western. While nothing revolutionary is on show, Costner’s direction aptly captures the action, emotions, and landscapes splendidly. However, there is a distinct lack of pistol duels and stand-offs compared to the amount of action. You can tell Costner is saving the bigger confrontations for the next movies, hence why this 3-hour viewing experience can be lacking. The sound design, along with John Debney‘s epically composer score, deserves praise, though. The film’s sonic elements add rich, immersive layers to the many expansive set pieces. In this regard, Horizon achieves its goal of bringing back the Western in style.
Kevin Costner’s Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 plays like an old-fashioned Western that echoes the illustrious works of John Ford. The characters are sincere with a mysterious edge, brutal when needed, and melancholic when emotions run high. John Debney’s harmonious score adds to the classic aesthetics of this Western, it spurs on the grandiose narrative as Costner slowly connects and makes sense of the many storylines. Don’t go in expecting the bombastic action of Sergio Leone’s Spaghetti Westerns or the emotional heights of Rio Bravo. Instead, expect a movie that explores the creation of new territories during a pivotal time in American history, wherein the Western vistas almost feel like characters in and of themselves. While Kevin Costner might stumble over some of his own ambitions here as a filmmaker, he still proves that he has something valuable to offer.
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. Chapter 1 hits theaters on June 28, 2024, followed by Chapter 2 on August 16, 2024!
Release Date: June 28, 2024.
Directed by Kevin Costner.
Written by Jon Baird & Kevin Costner.
Story by Jon Baird, Kevin Costner, & Mark Kasdan.
Produced by Kevin Costner, Howard Kaplan, & Mark Gillard.
Main Cast: Kevin Costner, Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Giovanni Ribisi, Danny Huston, Michael Rooker, Jena Malone, Michael Angarano, Abbey Lee, Jamie Campbell Bower, Jon Beavers, Owen Crow Shoe, Tatanka Means, Wasé Chief, Luke Wilson, Ella Hunt, Tom Payne, Will Patton, Isabelle Fuhrman, Jeff Fahey, Thomas Haden Church, Alejandro Edda, Tim Guinee, Colin Cunningham, Scott Haze, Angus Macfadyen, Douglas Smith, Michael Provost, Kathleen Quinlan, Larry Bagby, James Russo, Dale Dickey, Hayes Costner, James Landry Hébert, Dalton Baker, Georgia MacPhail, Naomi Winders, Austin Archer, & Charles Baker.
Cinematographer: J. Michael Muro.
Composer: John Debney.
Production Companies: New Line Cinema & Territory Pictures.
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures.
Runtime: 181 minutes (Chapter 1).
Rated R.
