Forsaken (2015)

Scarred by what he witnessed during the Civil War and the violent life he’s lived since then, John Henry Clayton (Kiefer Sutherland) returns home to Fallow determined to put his guns down for good.

He finds a father (Donald Sutherland as Rev. William Clayton) who has turned against him because of the life he’s led as a gunslinger. H

e finds a former lover (Demi Moore as Mary-Alice Watson) who’s now married and has a child with that other man.

He finds a town where businessman James McCurdy and his hired guns set the rules.

And, right now, they’re trying to force all the small farmers and ranchers off their land in hope that the railroad will come through and make that land worth a fortune.

Town leaders try to talk John Henry into coming to their defense. He turns them down.

He’s not sure what the future holds, but he’s determined to accomplish one thing: His mother always wanted a certain field cleared at the Clayton homestead; John Henry is going to clear that field.

As he begins to mend his relationship with his father, tensions between the ranchers and McCurdy mount. Even after being brutally beaten by McCurdy’s men, John Henry refuses to get involved.

Then William Clayton approaches McCurdy, calling for an end to the bloodshed. The reverend winds up being stabbed in the back.

It’s that act the goads John Henry into action. And, this time, he has his father’s blessing.

Review:

In the “making of” documentary that accompanies the DVD, director Jon Casser and Kiefer Sutherland say they long talked about making a “classic” Western while working together on the hit TV series, “24.”

Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, the “classic” Western became a film filled with classic Western clichés. No sooner has former gunslinger John Henry walked into a bar — unarmed no less — than he’s confronted with a young hotshot eager to prove his mettle.

And, seriously, is there anyone out there who didn’t know how this was all going to end no more than you learned the main plotline involved a villain forcing hard-working ranchers off their land?

The good news is, there are plenty of positives at a time when the Western landscape is littered with low-budget garbage.

The film features an attention-grabbing opening sequence. The action scenes are very well done. Michael Wincott is a delight as Gentleman Dave. There’s a chance to see Demi Moore turn in a solid performance in a very non-glamorous role.

Oh, and this marked the very first time Kiefer Sutherland and his father Donald Sutherland got to work together extensively, though they had both appeared in the same film on two previous occasions (Max Dugan Returns in 1983 and Time to Kill in 1996).

According to IMDb, the original editor’s cut of the film ran more than three hours long and involved a romantic subplot featuring Landon Liboiron’s character — he plays a young gunman in McCurdy’s employment — and a young girl played by Siobhan Williams. The entire subplot ended up on the cutting room floor.

Directed by:
Jon Casser

Cast:
Kiefer Sutherland … John Henry Clayton
Donald Sutherland … Rev. William Clayton
Brian Cox … James McCurdy
Michael Wincott … Gentleman Dave Turner
Aaron Poole … Frank Tillman
Demi Moore … Mary-Alice Watson
Jonny Reese … Tom Watson
as Greg Ellis
Dylan Smith … Little Ned
Landon Liboiron … Will Pickard
Brock Morgan … James Cleary
Westley Morgan … Sam Hatch
Graeme Black … Hank Plummer
Tom Carey … George
Chris Ippolito … Bob Waters
David McNally … Mr. Harper

Runtime: 93 min.

Memorable lines:

Frank Tillman: “My name’s Frank Tillman. Maybe you’ve heard of me.”
John Henry: “Can’t say as I have.”
Tillman: “Well, I killed four men.”
John Henry: “Still don’t ring a bell.”

Pastor, of McCurdy’s men: “If you don’t know them, you better stay away from them. Those are damned men. Those are godless men.”

Daniel, to the pastor: “We’re poor. When has the law ever cared about people like us.”

Mary Ellen: “I need to understand why you didn’t come back. I think I’m entitled to that much.”
John Henry: “I’ll say this, and I’ll say no more on the subject. The thought of coming back to you is the only thing that got me through that damned war. And when it was over, I swear to you on my life, I tried coming home. I swore I was done with killing. She just wasn’t done with me.”

James McCurdy: “I set you a simple task. You want to explain to me how you took that task and fucked it up in every conceivable way?”
Frank Tillman: “Well, I think everything’s alright.”
McCurdy: “Hmm, everything’s alright? We got two men dead. Chadwick’s still on his land. Now I might not be as clever as you, but to my way of thinking, no way that adds up to alright.”

James McCurdy: “The last thing we need is these muddle-heads thinking they can stand up to us.”

Frank Tillman: “You know what your problem is John Henry. You want to act like a pilgrim. But you still got the attitude of a killer.”

John Henry: “Time I did something right in my life. This is what I know how to do.”

Gentleman Dave: “No one hires a gunman who runs from trouble.”
John Henry: “You don’t have to run, Dave. You can walk.”

Christopher Rosamond as Daniel Peterson, a homesteader desperately trying to hold onto his land in Forsaken (2015)

Greg Ellis as Tom Watson and Paul Sillito as Charley Watson, wondering what John Henry’s reappearance will mean for the family in Forsaken (2015)

Demi Moore as Mary Alice Watson, watching a confrontation between husband Tom and former lover John Henry in Forsaken (2015)

Michael Wincott as Gentleman Dave Turner, trying to convince a homesteader to leave his land behind in Forsaken (2015)