If you've never seen Silverado, you're missing out on probably the best western to come out of the modern era. Set to one of the best western themes ever written, Bruce Broughton practically conducts the entire movie with his music. I'd listened to the soundtrack for years before I finally watched the movie, and the visuals did not disappoint.

Scott Glenn finds himself the target of an ambush, and on his way to town to try and find the villain who ordered it, he comes across Kevin Kline stripped down to his long-johns and left in the desert to die. He rescues Kevin, and they travel to town together. While there, Kevin has an unpleasant interaction with a former friend, Brian Dennehey, and Scott witnesses a bar fight between Danny Glover and a bartender who refuses to serve him. Scott also rescues his impulsive brother, Kevin Costner, from jail, and the four new pals ride off into the sunset together.

That's just the beginning! The fantastic introductions make you hopelessly attached to all four leads, and as they each pursue their own revenge goals, you'll be on the edge of your seat. The action scenes are fast-paced (even watching it 35 years later) and exciting, and the plot is just complicated enough to keep you guessing but not confused. Plus, an added bonus is four good-looking leads to drool over (if you can get past Kevin Kline's scraggly beard). Scott Glenn is as rugged as it gets, Danny Glover is charming and sentimental, and Kevin Costner is shockingly adorable. This is one of his earlier movies, before he adopted his "too cool for school" attitude, one that perhaps he took on in favor of his next film: The Untouchables. Maybe he took away his wild, youthful enthusiasm to play Elliot Ness and the crusty, unenthusiastic Crash Davis in Bull Durham, and after that, the dye was cast. If he was as cute in all his movies as he was in Silverado, I would absolutely love him.

So there you have it, four fantastic reasons to rent or revisit this classic western, and a bonus reason of a beautiful, exciting musical score. As someone who loves good westerns and hates bad ones, I can wholeheartedly recommend this one.

Hollywood version of th ewest.

Like badguys from several films tossed into one.

I have mixed feelings about "Silverado". On one hand, it's enjoyable to watch and has some nice performances. On the other, I taught US History and know that pretty much everything you see in the film is myth....a version of the old west that simply never happened. My advice is to watch it...but understand that it just never was like this...except in movies.

The first third of the movie is like a separate film in many ways. Several total strangers end up banding together to right some wrongs and they leave an old west town. Then, when they arrive in Silverado about a third of the way into the movie, they all go their separate ways in town. One ends up working for the local big baddie...the guy who wants to ultimately control everyone and everything. The others all end up getting screwed one way or another by this big baddie. And, you wonder how long it will take for them to get back together again to defeat this evil man and restore justice.

The actors that come off best in the film were Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Danny Glover and Brian Dennehy (as the baddie). There are a few other excellent performances as well. As for the film, there's plenty of excitement but there aren't a ton of surprises....well worth seeing.

By the way, are you wondering what is so wrong with the film historically? Well, a few things that come to mind is that the west was NEVER this violent, lawlessness was very rare and shootouts were practically nonexistent. So much for the movie image of the west!

This all-star American western of the 1980s appears to be quite divisive on the site, but I thought it was great fun. It does have something of a TV movie atmosphere to it - you just know that it's never going to be too violent or too dark, but rather quite family-friendly - but the plot is good enough to keep you interested and the cast is excellent. Director Lawrence Kasdan injects plenty of life into the proceedings and despite the lengthy running time I was never less than intrigued by the story.

The early parts of the film introduce the main characters in their own sub-plots. Hard-man Scott Glenn attempts to look after his precocious younger brother, played by Kevin Costner in a very youthful, slightly annoying turn. Danny Glover is a brooding hero type, coming home to his family after years away. Kevin Kline, best known for a career in comedy, is surprisingly efficient as the expert gunslinger. Others, like Brion James and Rosanna Arquette, don't really have much to do, although Linda Hunt is very good in her smaller part. John Cleese is miscast but thankfully not around too long.

The story comes and goes and even during the middle part, where the action scenes are in short supply, I was entertained. Brian Dennehy's larger than life sheriff character helps a lot and seems like he's been imported from FIRST BLOOD. The latter part of the film and climax play out exactly as you'd expect, but the action is well shot and exciting, and the cinematography makes this a gorgeous-looking experience. Overall, I found very little to dislike about it, and in actuality I loved it.