Oh those kooky Canadians. Leave it to them to come up with this way out of left field movie. I suppose this sort of "fish out of water" thing has been done before, but this is so lively and fresh it just plain feels brand new.Here's the scoop. Paul Gross, after dodging a hanging, finds himself in some bust-out Canadian town. He's on his horse, but he's been shot in the butt, rolled around in pig doo-doo and tied up. A long time bounty hunter/adversary is on his tail as he finds himself with an odd assortment of towns people who he must stay with (for at least a while) before he can get back on his horse and ride. It's that "at least a while" part that ends up messing with his head.
This movie is a real hoot. It's peppered with an oddball bunch of characters and somehow the goofy plot line makes its own kind of sense. They're such a crazy bunch they create a good juxtaposition to Gross's character. Yes he's killed men. Many men. But he's not a bad guy. His sense of right and wrong just somehow got out of hand. Now he meets a girl to whom he's indebted and he starts to realize that the constant running, and his sense of justice, might not be the best way to live. It almost plays out out like an episode of the "Andy Griffith Show."
It's set in a sparse part of Canada in a small town so the budget must have been manageable. But it doesn't look cheap. It's shot well and all the actors, even the secondary ones, do a really good job. You love these people and want to be with them. The music is good as well. There are a couple of quirky, tongue in cheek, tunes that help keep things light. This seems to be taking place in the late 19th century, but the language and many of the sensibilities are strictly "now." I don't know squat about Paul Gross but he handles his role extremely well. He's created a very memorable character. He reminds me a great deal of Josh Brolin. Sienna Guillroy is the love interest and she's quite fetching. These two make a fine pair.
I cannot say enough about this movie. There is no wasted time here. It moves at a decent clip and will not test your sense of time. It's as entertaining as a movie can be and it has a good heart without being cheezy. I had the time of my life watching it and would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone.
Paul Gross(quite well known in Canada, I remember him from the "Red Green Show") plays a, set in his ways, American gunslinger that flees into a bucolic, Canadian town being chased by, ever getting nearer, bounty hunters. He gets in a huff with the local, giant of a man, blacksmith and determines to have it out with him if, and a big if, he can find a working six shooter for the showdown.
He takes a job, a trade off, put up a windmill for a gun, with a pretty but struggling rancher, Sienna Guillory("Inkhart", "Resident Evil"). The townfold are quirky and charming and with the woman do there best to distract him from his plan.
It's well shot and scripted, nice scenery, and there's enough seriousness to it to keep it more in reality than just being a constant joke; moreover, the hero and heroine provide a sweet, developing, but at odds, romance. My wife won't watch a western unless there's some hint of romance or at least a woman in it.
It's not quite full family fare: the baddies shoot a dog, threaten townfolk, attempt a hanging, but overall, the violence is controlled and made fun of, the language, except for the outtakes, minimum; there's no nudity or sex, one implied encounter, and all things work out for the best with a moral about living peacefully.
Summary, a feel good movie, an unusual, comedic western, that also pokes light fun at cultural differences between US and Canada.
Read Best Reviews of Gunless (2010) Here
I bought Gunless because I like Paul Gross' work and I wanted to see his new movie. It didn't disappoint. Gunless has a very funny premise: Injured American gunfighter on the run arrives in a Canadian border town, challenges the blacksmith to a gun duel, discovers that there are no working pistols in the town, and has to wait around for days for parts to repair the only pistol before he can kill the poor man. It's a great twist on a basic Western movie plot. Paul Gross does a very good job as The Montana Kid. He has excellent comedic timing and plays the character as a decent, too serious, frustrated man who has lost his way. There is a sweet romance, but not too much to turn off the guys in the audience. Sienna Guillory is a wonderful foil for Gross' comedy and, along with the rest of the ensemble, projects an innocent inability to understand this American's need for dueling and revenge. The actors all have a wonderful talent for comedy, the Alberta setting is gorgeous, and the ending is very satisfactory. This movie doesn't pretend to be great art, but it's a whole lot of fun. I highly recommend it. (By the way, I understand that this may be the only Canadian Western in existence. It has an all Canadian cast, I think, and you can tell they had fun making.)This movie is a favorite now. It is funny and has a good message. Mostly though, it is not something I have to work at watching. I don't need to pick it apart or work hard to find some hidden dramatic meaning. It's purely entertaining, which is what I generally like in movies. The characters and the actors who play them are great diverse in personality. Melodie Choi is just about the cutest kid I've ever seen in a movie and a good actor as well. And Paul Gross -well aside from the good acting, has a voice that is perfect for the character. A few familiar faces are in this movie, but mostly actors who are relatively new to movies and/or not usually seen in the US movie market. The only negative thing I can say about it is the language in the outtakes during the end credits. Otherwise it couldn't be better. It's good fun and I highly recommend it to just about anyone. Paul Gross's character is a gunslinger and does talk about the eleven people he's killed, so parents might want to monitor that and "guide" any young children. I, personally, would have no problem allowing younger kids to watch this, with that guidance.Save 19% Off
