Deadwood: The Movie

Deadwood:  The Movie 

After leaving the series unfinished, it is refreshing to see the show receive a proper ending and characters get their arcs closed.  Watching this movie is like revisiting an old friend from the mid2000s.  It is amusing seeing how much each character looks different.  It is also interesting watching these characters looked a little worn down by living the wild-west.  Deadwood has constantly been about the grittier side of the wild west and this movie isn’t different.   

Like the show, this has David Milch's fingerprints all over it with its sprawling stories and characters.  Milch’s more flowery dialogue is still present but with less “cocksuckers” for the movie.  As the movie progresses, the dialogue improves and turns into season one levels.   

It is enjoyable to see that these characters have lived on with their lives despite the fact we haven’t seen them in nearly 10.  There are changes to some of them while others are much older and beat-down.  The west isn’t that kind to people.   

Not only do we see changes in the characters, but the railroad is in the forefront.  Instead of a telegraph, there is a public telephone at the center of town.  Progress is also the pushing narrative that sets certain storylines forward.   

The movie is clearly following certain story beats that were supposed to be paid off over a ten-episode season but had to be condensed into a two-hour movie.  However, there are also other things written into the show for the passage of time.  Certain characters address the passage of ten years and some of them die in this movie.  I like the balance between the time setting and the story. 

In the last season, the murder of the prostitute was supposed to carry on into the fourth season, but simply ends the third season on an uneven note. We finally get to see the fallout of that murder and how effects the characters around them. This co-insides with the murder of a fan favorite as well. The story weaves all these different character arcs breathlessly.

George Hurst is still the main villain of the piece.  Despite being in a higher position of power Senator in the US, he still has a hunger for taking over smaller claims.  This leads to another murder of a favorite character.  There is a nice chilling moment where a hint of regret shows on Hurst's’ face when the character declines his offer.  “Well, I am going to have murdered him.”  Gerald McRaney once again plays the greater main villain with chilling charm.   I love this version of Hurst and his hands in everything in the form of "progress".  

The dialogue can be a bit troublesome to listen.  However, it does get better as the movie progresses. Overall, it is fun to watch these characters show back up for one more movie and finish the story they left on at the end of season three.

Grade: A-