The Warrant (2020)

Neal McDonough is John Breaker, Casper Van Dien is “The Saint,” comrades in the Northern Army during the Civil War.

When The Saint’s son is killed by a Confederate sniper, he deserts to exact revenge; Breaker is sent to track him down.

He does so successfully. But he also gives The Saint an option: reckoning in the form of a hangman’s noose or redemption, a chance to flee to the West never to be heard from again.

“The Saint” chooses the latter. But he’s heard from again, and he’s still waging his own personal Civil War.

This time, the task of tracking him down falls to Breaker’s son, newly elected Marshal Cal Breaker.

He’s prepared to attempt to serve a warrant on The Saint with the help of his lone deputy, Shanks. But he wouldn’t mind a little help.

So his father John and his sidekick Bugle (Gregory Cruz) sign on as the marshal’s deputies.

They’re still going to be outnumbered. Because The Saint has surrounded himself with a group of cutthroats.

Neal McDonough as Deputy Marshal John Breaker, determined to help serve a warrant in The Warrant (2020)

Casper Van Dien as Virgil, aka The Saint, defiant in the face of a warrant for his arrest in The Warrant (2020)

Review:

Dang, look at that. A taunt, very well done 2020 Western in which the entire cast looks comfortable in front of the camera.

Neal McDonough is especially effective as John Breaker, a man who showed mercy during the war and who’s own personal warrant has come due as a result.

But he’s surrounded by a highly competent cast. And director Christy serves up well-filmed action scenes and well-timed Civil War flashback sequences.

The latter succeed — a rare feat in a 21st Century Western — because they don’t try to go too large scale.

Well worth a watch by any fan of Westerns. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Steve R. McQueen as Cal Breaker, John’s son and the newly elected marshal in The Warrant (2020)

Gregory Cruz as Bugle, John Breaker’s longtime saddlemate in The Warrant (2020)

Directed by:
Brent Christy

Cast:
Neal McDonough … John Breaker
Steven R. McQueen … Cal Breaker
Annabeth Gish … Bonnie Breaker
Gregory Cruz … Bugle
Roxanna Dunlop … Stacey Snyder
Brian Durkin … Blackjack
Greg Perrow … Deputy Shanks
Drew Walters … Jeremiah Handle
Casper Van Dien … The Saint
Greg Alan Williams … Tucker Macready
Trace Cheramie … George Washington Jr.
Esteban Cueto … Anvil
Daniel Norris … Holt
Isaiah Stratton … Franklin York
Christie McNab … Abigail Abington

Runtime: 84 min.

Roxanna Dunlop as Stacey Snyder, the female member of The Saint’s gang in The Warrant (2020)

Annabeth Gish as Bonnie Breaker, John’s husband and Cal’s mom in The Warrant (2020)

Memorable lines:

John Breaker: “There’s something cookin’ ’round here, Boog, and it’s making me hangry.”

John Breaker, as a Union soldier: “I believe in what we’re fightin’ for. That doesn’t mean I have to hate what we’re fightin’ against.”

John Breaker: “Cut from the same cloth.”
Bugle: “Like wool. In the summer.”

Bonnie Breaker to husband John: “You’ve been dodging bullets your whole life. Now I feel you’re stepping right into one.”

John Breaker: “You’re broken. And you’re bad. But you’re not evil, Virg.”

Greg Perrow as Deputy Shanks, Cal Breaker’s new deputy in The Warrant (2020)

Esteban Cueto as Anvil, a member of The Saint’s gang in The Warrant (2020)

Greg Alan Williams as Tucker Macready, one of The Saint’s men in The Warrant (2020)

Daniel Norris as Holt, a member of The Saint’s gang in The Warrant (2020)

Isaiah Stratton as Franklin York, the sniper among The Saint gang in The Warrant (2020)

Trace Cheramie as George Washington Jr., a member of The Saint’s gang in The Warrant (2020)

Casper Van Dien as Virgil, aka The Saint, caught getting revenge for a dead son in The Warrant (2020)

Neal McDonough as John Breaker, a soldier tasked with tracking down a comrade and deserter in The Warrant (2020)