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	Movie Review - Broken Trail (2006)     (What this rating means)       Director: Walter Hill Starring: Robert Duvall, Thomas Haden Church, Chris Mulkey, and Greta Scacchi Rated: NR Length: 180 minutes Genre: Western Tagline: None Studio: AMC TV Website: Broken Trail PLOT Set in 1897, Print Ritter (Duvall) and his estranged nephew Tom Harte (Church) become the reluctant guardians of five abused and abandoned Chinese girls (introducing Caroline Chan, Olivia Cheng, Jadyn Wong, Valerie Tian, and Gwendoline Yeo). Ritter and Harte's attempts to care for the girls are complicated by their responsibility to deliver a herd of horses while avoiding a group of bitter rivals intent on kidnapping the girls for their own purposes. Another epic Robert Duvall Western ensues. JOHNNY'S TAKE Watching AMC's Western miniseries Broken Trail is similar to reading a compelling novel - the beauty's in the details. Rather than rushing story and character development in order to get to the next action scene (so as to appease those with Attention Span Deficit Syndrome), Broken Trail understands that the mark of a really good Western lies with interesting, colorful characters and a storytelling style that convinces you to keep watching. I've always been a fan of Westerns and always will be; that's why it's so disappointing that today's movie/TV landscape doesn't seem to have the time, money, or patience to do the genre right. Hopefully, Broken Trail is just the beginning of a reversal to this trend. If you're a fan of Western epics in the vein of Lonesome Dove then I strongly suggest you check out Broken Trail. The story is a little unconventional as far as Westerns go, but you know what? It works. And it works well. I was initially curious how captivated I would be by watching two men accompany five Chinese girls across the Western wilderness, but rather than focusing on the concept, this is all about the journey and the adventures and characters that are encountered along the way. Church proves himself quite a versatile actor (how far has he come since Wings?), and Duvall puts in the type of effortless performance that I could watch him deliver every week. He's not unlike Augustus McCrae, but what does it matter? He plays the character flawlessly. Here's a tip - never doubt a Western that Duvall is attached to. Moving at a smooth, campfire pace, Broken Trail presents characters you'll care about, conflicts you'll want to see resolved, cinematography that will convince you to take a trip out West, and enough Western justice to keep the diehard fans of action content. Just keep in mind that the shootouts aren't thrown in for the mere sake of satisfying those who demand violence in their Westerns. All the gunplay comes as a necessity to the story and is allowed to happen exactly when it needs to. It's never forced for the sake of hurrying things along. This is a miniseries that is reason enough alone to justify your cable or satellite bill, and we can only hope that enough viewers tune in to influence more quality programming like this in the future. Check out the following videos, and don't forget - AMC on Sunday, June 25 and Monday, June 26 at 7:00 PM Central: Broken Trail New Trailer Dangerous Places Horses Intolerable Odds The Trilogy What Makes A Western Check out my Broken Trail info page for a closer look at this miniseries, and take a look at Broken Trail's official website for more information, including pictures, videos, and a look behind the scenes. MAMA'S APPROVAL We see some very brief nudity at the beginning when the Chinese girls are being inspected to determine which ones will fetch the highest price. There are also a few "s" words, but this won't offend the majority of you out there. TRAILER COMPARISON The trailer and commercials I've seen are a great indication of what to expect. THE GIST Watch it. That's the bottom line. Enjoy Duvall's talent while you still can.	RETURN TO HOME PAGE Underworld 3 Yes Man Transporter 3 Four Christmases Twilight Quantum of Solace Ghouls Eagle Eye Righteous Kill Tropic Thunder Weekend Results: 1. Watchmen($55,214,334) 2. Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail($8,532,412) 3. Taken($7,334,814) 4. Slumdog Millionaire($6,808,383) 5. Paul Blart: Mall Cop($4,146,316)

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