Into the great, wide 'Open'

Kevin Costner returns to the frontier with his latest entry to the Western genre, Open Range -- new to DVD. The film received strong critical notices upon its release this past August, and yet went relatively ignored by mass audiences. Those of you who missed Range during its theatrical run would be well advised to check out this sterling, 2-disc DVD set.\nRange is a welcome throwback to the Westerns of yore (i.e. it's the perfect movie to watch with your father, grandfather or John Wayne-lovin' uncle). Costner and Robert Duvall star as a pair of free grazers who eventually run afoul of a ruthless rancher (acclaimed Irish thespian, Michael Gambon). Troubles mount, and as was custom, squabbles are settled with six-shooters and scatterguns -- resulting in one of the best Western gunfights ever committed to celluloid. Yes, this includes Tombstone, Butch Cassidy, The Wild Bunch, The Magnificent Seven and any number of Sergio Leone's great spaghetti Westerns.\nThe DVD is good but not nearly as compelling as its source material. The special features are all very Costner-centric, which is to say there isn't a pie here that he doesn't have his finger in. I suppose this is appropriate, as Costner not only stars in the film but also directs and produces it, but I'd prefer to hear the insights of screen legend Duvall. Costner narrates the featurettes, "America's Open Range" (which is especially cool for its inclusion of letter excerpts from Teddy Roosevelt's cowboy days), and "Beyond Open Range," a director's journal that's notable for the unintentional humor of his spewing obscenities toward wary investors. A lackluster commentary track by Costner, unneeded deleted scenes, storyboards and a music video montage mostly consisting of, surprise, surprise, Costner riding atop his horse, fill-out the extras.\nWhile the DVD itself might be an exercise in egocentrism, one shouldn't hold that against the film. Open Range is one of the best (sure, it's also one of the few) Westerns I've seen in years.