Ti West Missed the Target

I was riveted to this one for 45 minutes. Great animated credit opening homage to the old spaghettis. Great setup. I thought I had a winner here. Then they killed the dog. Kill the girl or the dog and turn the story into yet another cliched vengeance quest, and you lose ole Mean Pete. Can't recommend it. More tired even than the zombie western. I hate it when they kill animals--not only because I'm an animal lover, but because it's a crutch for otherwise poor motivation and plotting. Uninspired writing. For crying in the queen's ale, come up with something fresh. It's not that effing hard! Ethan Hawk, John Travolta, and Taissa Farmiga were terrifically wasted in a poorly imagined and written script by Ti West, whose work--primarily his horror movies--I've admired in the past. This, however, misses the mark. If you raise money to make a western, make a good one.