The Way of the West (2011)

Andrew Walker is Wade Grayling, a Mountie scouting the location of a new fort when he finds a small settlement growing at the proposed site.

And, clearly, all is not well. The handful of residents are living under the thumb of Cossacks led by a man named Kleus. He and his band run whiskey down the nearby river.

Grayling decides he’ll be the community’s protector. He develops a fatherly relationship with a young girl named Cleora.

He finds himself wondering about a pretty older girl named Amethyst with a nasty scar on the side of her face. He’s almost immediately skeptical of her father Olaf, the religious leader of the community and the man who negotiates with the Cossacks.

The tension between Grayling and Olaf mounts when he discovers the settlement’s inhabitants have been growing opium and trading it to the Cossacks. He burns their fields, despite the warning that such action will lead to a showdown with Kleus and his gang.

It does just that, and it looks like Grayling will be standing alone in that showdown.

Andrew Walker as Wade Grayling in The Way of the West (2011)

Jessica Pare as Amethyst in The Way of the West (2011)

Review:

Beautiful looking film and certainly a notch above the standard 21st century Western. The unique setting and cast of characters help. The relationship between Mountie Grayling and the young girl who looks up to him is among the film’s highlights. Especially her desire to learn how to shoot at such a young age.

But the plot will leave you scratching your head. It takes forever to figure out that the young girl is also Olaf’s daughter. The Cossacks are supposed to be the most evil villains you’ve ever come across, but they seldom act on their threats. And it seems they’re on the verge of killing the bit-too-invincible Mountie several times, but keep bumbling those chances.

Most head-scratching of all is the motivation of Olaf, who is being beaten senseless by the Cossacks one moment, then joins with them in their fight against the Mountie in the next.

Bottom line: Good film, worth watching. But such a great looking film could have been better.

Earl Pastko as Olaf in The Way of the West (2011)

John Wildman as Robert Johnson in The Way of the West (2011)

Directed by:
Wyeth Clarkson

Cast:
Andrew Walker … Wade Grayling
Jessica Pare … Amethyst
Earl Pastko … Olaf
John Wildman … Robert Johnson
George Buza … Kleus
Tony Munch … Cobb
Matthew G. Taylor … Nikolai
Andrey Ivchenko … Pachek
Kestrel Martin … Cleora
Maria Williams … Mirdsa

aka:
The Mountie
Lawman

Score: Ivan Barbotin

Runtime: 83 min.

George Buza as Kleus in The Way of the West (2011)

Matthew Taylor as Nikolai in The Way of the West (2011)

Memorable lines:

Olaf: “In the old country, a man hanging outside town keeps away trouble. But still, you came.”
Mountie Wade Grayling: “I’m not trouble. I’m the law.”

Kleus: “A man who cannot control his family is no man. He is gypsy filth.”

Tony Munch as Cobb in The Way of the West (2011)

Kestrel Martin as Cleora in The Way of the West (2011)

Jessica Pare as Amethyst in The Way of the West (2011)

Andrew Walker as Wade Grayling in The Way of the West (2011)