Let’s start with the good news: Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 is ambitious. It’s sweeping. It’s full of majestic landscapes, brooding cowboys, and people who stare into the distance as if they’ve just remembered they left the stove on. The bad news? It’s three hours long, Costner barely shows up until an hour in, and it’s the first chapter of what might be an unfinished saga. You ever start a book and realize halfway through that the author never wrote the sequel? Welcome to the cinematic equivalent of that.
A 36-Year Journey from “Passion Project” to “Financial Sinkhole”
Kevin Costner first had the idea for Horizon back in 1988, presumably right after Bull Durham made him Hollywood’s golden boy. But like an old cowboy story, it got lost in the desert of studio rejections. Disney almost bit in 2003 after Open Range, but negotiations fell apart over $5 million—probably what they now spend on CGI hair for The Little Mermaid.
After decades of rewrites, Costner decided, “If you want something done right, mortgage your own house.” And that’s exactly what he did, dumping $38 million of his own money into the film like a man who really, really believes people still love epic Westerns. Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema got involved, and the film was set for HBO Max before they realized people don’t actually subscribe to streaming services for 3-hour Westerns. So, they went old school and released it theatrically, where it landed with all the grace of a buffalo stepping on a landmine.
A Cast as Vast as the Frontier, but Who Do We Care About?
The cast is stacked. Costner recruited Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Giovanni Ribisi, Jena Malone, Luke Wilson, and Michael Rooker—basically, everyone Hollywood had on speed dial who wasn’t already tied up in a Fast & Furioussequel. And in a touching father-son moment, Costner cast his own son, Hayes, marking his film debut. Because what’s the point of sinking your life savings into a passion project if you can’t use it to get your kid an acting credit?
Filming took place in Utah, with conditions that ranged from a sweltering 109°F to a bone-chilling 9°F—much like the audience’s enthusiasm over the course of its three-hour runtime. Costner insisted on historical accuracy, even including a rare J.H. Dance .44 pistol… except, oops, those weren’t available, so they used a Colt Dragoon instead. Close enough for government work, right? The plot itself is a tangled mess of intersecting stories featuring settlers, Apache warriors, wagon trains, and revenge plots, with the overall message being: The West was brutal, everyone had a bad time, and the sequel might never happen.
A Standing Ovation… But Was That Just for Surviving the Runtime?
Horizon premiered at Cannes, where it received a 10-minute standing ovation. Now, Cannes is known for handing out long ovations like free samples at Costco, so don’t read too much into that. The critics, however, were less generous. With a 51% score on Rotten Tomatoes and a 49 on Metacritic, the general consensus was, “Nice cinematography, but did it need to be this long?” Audiences were also split—CinemaScore reported a B–, which is the polite way of saying, “Eh, it was fine, I guess.”
Financially, the movie bombed. It cost $100 million to make and grossed only $38.7 million worldwide. The planned Chapter 2 was supposed to release in August 2024, but after Chapter 1’s box office belly flop, it got pushed back indefinitely, proving once again that even Hollywood megastars can’t just will a four-part Western saga into existence. Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 remain in limbo, meaning there’s a nonzero chance that Horizon ends up as the most expensive unfinished movie series since The Golden Compass.
The Verdict: Good Intentions, Bad Pacing, Uncertain Future
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 isn’t a bad film—it’s just too much of a film. It looks beautiful, the performances are solid, and there’s potential in its storytelling. But it moves slower than a one-legged horse in a tar pit. If you love classic Westerns, you might appreciate its methodical approach. If you have an actual job and responsibilities, you might struggle to justify spending three hours on something that doesn’t even conclude.
Costner swung for the fences, but he might have mistaken the audience’s nostalgia for Dances with Wolves as a genuine desire for a four-part, self-funded epic. If Chapter 2 ever gets released, maybe we’ll get the payoff this setup desperately needs. But for now, Horizon is an unfinished story, and the only thing more tragic than its box office performance is the realization that Kevin Costner might have sold his house for nothing.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3/5)
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