This movie has all the people you see in a western and while not the shallowest group they lack depth. You have your bada** hero who brings law where there is none. Then you have his faithful companion who is almost as good but has the conscious which sometimes rears his head even though he tries not to question the hero. The female is very lonely and can’t survive without some sort of man in her life. The people running the town are spineless and somewhat dimwitted. The villain who wants to be a legitimate business man. Mix them all together and you have at least one character from every western ever made.
What makes Appaloosa good though is the relationship between Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensens’ characters. The bond between them is extremely believable and gives weight to the idea that they would give their life for each other. I never once doubted that they would stick things together. It also provided for a good deal of humor in the movie because they were so close. Small jokes and jabs were taken at each other that made them even feel like brothers.
The film moved fairly slow which is expected of many western I think. Though at one point I wondered why the film continued on after a major scene. The ending definitely justified the film, though I wouldn’t mind a quicker cut. Ed Harris did well al the way around with all the roles he took on to make this film although the acting props are given to Viggo and Jeremy Irons. This film is definitely a go see in the theater though I don’t think it has much replay value.