In that regard, "Lone Star" is his best (and for me, most enjoyable) film.Lone Star Review The movie Lone Star was released in 1996 and tells the story of cultural conflicts experienced by a few different social groups in Rio County, Texas from 1957 to present day. The story involves Mexican, Anglo, African-American and Indian cultures and the problems these groups have while living near the Mexican Border. In a culture where 19 out of 20 residents are Mexican, the Anglos are in the minority but still rule the powerful positions in the community namely politics, law enforcement, and business. The African-American population is smaller than the Anglo population and this group faces discrimination and prejudice from the Mexicans and Anglos both.
The movie focuses on three stories with characters from each ethnic group and the issues that they are confronted with both within their cultures and also as their culture relates to the other cultures. The characters experience prejudice and acceptance, love (sometimes forbidden) and hate, democracy and dictatorship, tragedy and triumph, and success and failure. The relationships touch on family dynamics, romance, social and political aspects of the individuals in this film. In addition to the movie's entertainment value, the hidden educational content was a pleasant addition. I found it difficult to stay emotionally detached from the characters in this film and I was surprised to learn how their lives intertwined. I think this movie was extremely well done and I think it has something to offer just about everyone. Although I was disappointed in the way the movie ended, I truly enjoyed Lone Star and I would give it a four out of five star rating. This is an excellent movie that I would recommend to anyone.
I can't say about enough about John Sayles or the cast, especially the horribly underappreciated Chris Cooper in the lead role. I only wish that the DVD included commentary from both director and cast. Still, it's worth owning, and worth watching many times.Slow but engaging If you are looking for an action flick or suspense thriller, look elsewhere, this movie will disappoint you. Fans of overdone, unrealistic, nearly plotless action movies (such as the John Woo action movies "Broken Arrow" and "Mission Impossible II") will probably be severely disappointed by Lone Star.
However, if you find overdone action movies like "Broken Arrow" and "Mission Impossible II" to be contrived, formulaic, and shallow, to the point of being boring, you will love this movie. You must be comfortable with a slower movie pace to appreciate the masterful plot and character development in this movie. For example, if you enjoyed The Shawshank Redemption (I loved it, though it was long and slow at times), you will also love this movie.
The plot, setting, etc. are probably less relevant than simply asking yourself what type of movie you enjoy. An action-film lover could easily give Lone Star a one star review, while a filmgoer who doesn't need a lot of action will surely love this movie, and give it an enthusiastic five star review.
Final caution: If you have children younger than teenagers, don't watch this as a family or the children will likely be very bored. There's no really objectionable content, but the kids will not follow the movie well enough and will get bored.
