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Intense, gripping, stylish and poignant

Excellent, smart action film.

Beautiful, moving film.

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

I saw it many years ago but so many of the scenes still resonate with me. Most of all I remember the stunning finale with Chris Cooper and Elizabeth Peña. Chris Cooper deserved an Oscar for that scene alone, it was so powerful yet so sensitive. Great acting of the kind you see so rarely in films these days.

This is a film with a really good cast list, but I had never heard of it before, until I found it in the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, so I was definitely going to watch it. Basically in Frontera, Texas, a human skeleton has been discovered in the desert by relic hunters, local Sheriff Sam Deeds (Chris Cooper) is called to investigate the find. The corpse has been buried for forty years, the body was also found with a Rio County Sheriff's badge (the lone star of the title), the skeleton is identified as being Charlie Wade (Kris Kristofferson), the former corrupt sheriff. Through flashbacks, we see that Wade terrorised the long-term residents with his tormenting of the many minorities and being violent, Charlie was eventually replaced by Sam's father, Buddy (Matthew McConaughey), who is revealed to be the murderer and buried his body. It also sees the events, past and present, from the perspectives of the townspeople, including local nightclub owner Delmore 'Del' Payne (Terminator 2's Joe Morton), business leader Mercedes Cruz (Miriam Colon) and the current Mayor and Buddy's former deputy, Hollis Pogue (Live and Let Die's Clifton James), and the difficult relationship Sam had with his father, including not allowing him to have a relationship with pretty Hispanic girl Pilar Cruz (Elizabeth Peña). Also starring Stephen Mendillo as Cliff, Frances McDormand as Bunny, Stephen J. Lang as Mikey, Ron Canada as Otis Payne, LaTanya Richardson Jackson as Priscilla Worth, Eddie Robinson as Chet Payne, Bedazzled's Gabriel Casseus as Young Otis, Ugly Betty's Tony Plana as Ray and Jeff Monahan as Young Hollis. The performances are all fine, and the story did grab my interest at the right moments, I think this film is really only interesting though because of the witty script, it is meant to be a slow-burner, almost too slow, but it is an alright murder mystery drama. It was nominated the Oscar for Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen for John Sayles (also directing), it was nominated the BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay, and it was nominated the Golden Globe for Best Screenplay. Worth watching, in my opinion!

John Sayles is regarded as one of the best independent film-makers about and Lone Star is a film of a man in full throttle. Its a set of interwoven stories set in two time periods as Chris Cooper a border town sheriff who has returned to his home town where his father was a legendary Sheriff investigates a 40 year old murder that may have been committed by his own father. He also rekindles a romance with a childhood, Hispanic sweetheart that his father was very much against at the time.The film is foremost a murder mystery but also deals with issues of police corruption, illegal immigration, justice, politics and racism. Sayles was rightly nominated for an Oscar for his screenplay.Chris Cooper holds the film as the dogged sheriff. Kriss Kristofferson and Matthew McConaughey make effective cameos in flashback scenes. There is a strange cameo from Frances McDormand as Cooper's ex-wife who is dealing with mental health issues which probably led to their divorce.The film is thoughtful, provocative and requires attention. Its not a slam bang or a slow burner. Many multiple stories come together as the past comes to haunt the present and relationships are made clearer.

If anything I found this one a little too complex; there were several threads that seemed totally unrelated to the main thrust of the story. It's also, I felt, a little too long; the filmmakers are asking quite a lot for an audience to concentrate for two hours and fifteen minutes. It is slow paced, but I didn't particularly mind that; I'm used to the noir style and it is usually quite a slow burner. Some great performances with Chris Cooper coping well with the leading role and Kris Kristofferson playing the villain of the peace with gusto. Also we have Elizabeth Peña, who did an excellent job as the female lead and a small part for Matthew McConaughey as Buddy Deeds. Although it does have its problems I still found it an excellent watch; definitely one to look out for for all you noir fans out there.SteelMonster's verdict: RECOMMENDEDMy score: 7.5/10.You can find an expanded version of this review on my blog: Thoughts of a SteelMonster.