http://www.southflorida.com/movies/sfl-tvtjintojun05,0,78273.story

From the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

TNT marches Into the West with gritty, spectacular chronicle of pioneer
life

By Tom Jicha
TV/Radio Writer

June 5 2005

Into the West aspires to be special. This counts for a lot in an era when
the broadcast networks have abdicated any attempt at the big-ticket
productions that used to add a touch of luster to a mundane medium -- the
likes of Lonesome Dove, The Thorn Birds and The Winds of War.

Even two-part miniseries are becoming extinct. TV's remaining big events
exist independent of the tube: the Super Bowl, the Oscars, the Olympics,
etc.

But laudable aspirations are only a small part of the appeal of TNT's
12-hour, six-part miniseries (only the first six hours were available for
review), produced by Steven Spielberg. Into the West boasts an enthralling
story, a cavalcade of stellar performances, captivating cinematography and
ambitious directing by a half dozen well-credentialed veterans, each of
whom helms an episode.

The tens of millions of dollars in the budget can be seen on the screen.
When the story calls for a procession of wagon trains traversing the
prairie, viewers are treated to authentic covered wagons, driven by real
people, rather than CGI figures on a virtual landscape. Breathtaking
buffalo stampedes utilize real buffaloes. Battles feature hundreds of
horses and extras. Scenes are framed like gorgeous paintings, creating a
sense of time and place.

Deadwood does this for one small town at a distinct moment in history; Into
the West conveys this feeling with a narrative that spans a continent and
the better part of a century. Every facet of life on the frontier is
vividly re-created. It is a harsh, often ugly existence, fraught with
heartaches and spirit-crushing disappointments -- but also one of
wonderful, simple pleasures and a sense of satisfaction at conquest over
adversity.

"We're not trying to tell a bleak story. We're trying to tell the real
story," co-executive producer Darryl Frank said. "There are many instances
in certain sequences where Steven has said, `I want to make sure that if
we're going to do the sequence, we do it right, in a real way, meaning in
terms of violence and a lot of aspects. We don't want to be gratuitous but
we want to be real."

Detailed research

Into the West recruited a posse of experts to make sure it got things
right, said David Rosemont, another executive producer. "We have made sure
we have backstopped ourselves with great credibility. We have George and
Kay Karol Horse Capture from the Smithsonian, who have commented on the
scripts. We have Joe Marshall, who joined us as a Native American adviser.
He has written books on Lakota lore and a recent book on Crazy Horse."

Spielberg's mania for authenticity is indulged to a fault. Viewers who use
reading glasses are advised to keep a pair within reach, as most of the
Indian dialogue is rendered with English subtitles rather than spoken
translation. This is generally considered inadvisable for TV because of the
way people watch; that is, without the rapt attention they might have in a
darkened theater.

However, Spielberg refused to compromise to make the production more
accessible, according to Frank. "Steven wanted all the native actors to
speak the Lakota language because the most important thing was it felt
authentic. We erred on the side of authenticity as opposed to just doing it
in English."

It isn't just the constant subtitling that will require viewers to put
aside newspapers and magazines and turn off the phone. The
multigenerational story is so thick and densely populated that uncommon
attention is mandatory. Important characters appear, become embroiled in
heart-stopping scenes, then disappear for entire episodes. In some cases,
new actors assume roles to allow for the passage of time.

Two main story lines

Into the West re-creates the populating of the frontier from two
perspectives, each given equal weight: the Wheeler family of Virginia, and
a tribe of Lakota Indians with colorful names such as Loved by the Buffalo,
Dog Star, Running Fox and Thunder Heart Woman.

In the era of political correctness, there has been an over-correction in
evolving Indian portrayals from uncouth, bloodthirsty savages to noble
individuals with a degree of wisdom and sophistication beyond plausibility.
Into the West avoids this. Indians are portrayed as having a well-developed
culture, steeped in family and respect for tradition. However, the script
also gives them a ferocious aspect, indiscriminately killing, raping and
enslaving members of rival tribes well before the white man's incursion
into their world.

Charlie White Buffalo, a Lakota who also served as an adviser on the
project, said Into the West "humanizes the Native American. We have
laughter and compassion. We have our problems. But we also have a fractious
side. We are warriors."

Matthew Settle stars as the early focal point, Jacob Wheeler, whose
Virginia family has achieved New World prosperity producing, appropriately
enough, wheels. Jacob is struck with wanderlust as he hears tales of
frontier derring-do from adventurers who have been there and returned. As
soon as the opportunity presents itself, he is on his way to the fabled
golden land of California.

Native American Tonantzin Carmelo outshines better-known actresses as
Thunder Heart Woman, a Lakota bartered in adolescence by her tribe to a
trader. After giving birth to a son, she is widowed by an Indian raiding
party, which slaughters her husband and snatches her child.

The lives of Jacob and Thunder Heart Woman intersect when he saves her from
being sold as a slave to a roughneck mountain man (Gary Busey). Affection
evolves into love, and Jacob and Thunder Heart Woman begin a family of
their own. Their offspring and extended families take their places
successively as protagonists in an ambitious story that occupies most of
the 1800s.

An impressive cast

A wagon train could be filled with all the familiar and not-so-familiar
faces who show up during the 12 hours. Recognizable names include John
Terry, who plays the older Jacob; Skeet Ulrich as Jacob's brother Jethro;
Josh Brolin as fabled frontiersman Jedediah Smith; Beau Bridges as blowhard
wagon train organizer Stephen Hoxie; Keri Russell, Jessica Capshaw and
Emily Holmes as Jacob's three cousins, who join his second odyssey to the
West, and Matthew Modine as another cousin; Sean Astin as California
gold-rusher Martin Jarrett; Irene Bedard as Margaret Wheeler, Jacob's
daughter; Russell Means as Running Fox, a member of Thunder Heart Woman's
tribe; and the ubiquitous Graham Greene, as the Lakota elder Conquering
Bear.

Episodes not made available for review will feature Tom Berenger, Lance
Henriksen, Wes Studi, Keith Carradine, Judge Reinhold, Joanna Going, David
Paymer and Craig Sheffer. In all, there are several hundred speaking parts.

TNT has devised a creative "three-play weekend" plan to offer maximum
opportunity to keep up with the multi-parter. Each episode will air on a
Friday, Saturday and Sunday, with encores on most of those nights. There
will also be replays the following weekend in addition to the debut of the
subsequent episode.

Those who don't avail themselves of one of these screenings will be missing
a viewing highlight of the year, a genuine event in an era when those are
becoming as rare as wide open spaces.

Tom Jicha can be reached at tjicha@....

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