Comanche Moon |  | Director: Simon Wincer
Actors: Scotty Augare, Troy Baker, Elizabeth Banks, Adam Beach, Josh Berry
Studio: Sony Pictures
Category: DVD
List Price: $14.94
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Rating:  66 reviews
Sales Rank: 2660
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), French (Subtitled)
Rating: Unrated
Region: 99
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Number Of Discs: 2
Running Time: 284 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 5.1 x 0.6
MPN: 22647
UPC: 043396226470
EAN: 0043396226470
ASIN: B00116GEJS
Theatrical Release Date: 2008
Release Date: February 26, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
No Description Available.
Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: UN
Release Date: 26-FEB-2008
Media Type: DVD
Amazon.com
It's billed as "the second chapter in the Lonesome Dove saga," but Comanche Moon is actually a prequel to that much-loved 1989 miniseries. And while there's no doubt that it has some very big boots to fill, this three-part (on two DVDs, including bonus features) production is rarely less than eminently watchable and entertaining. Continuity is a positive factor: Larry McMurtry, who wrote the novel on which it's based, also co-wrote the screenplay, and Lonesome Dove director Simon Wincer returns as well. As for the cast, it's certainly not as star-studded as its predecessor, but Steve Zahn (as Gus McCrae), Karl Urban (Woodrow Call), Linda Cardellini (Clara Allen), and the others manage to suggest the characterizations brought to the screen by Robert Duvall, Tommy Lee Jones, and Anjelica Huston, respectively, without mimicking them. Of course, there are new faces on hand as well, principally Val Kilmer (looking a mite chubby, perhaps due to all the scenery he chews in his portrayal of Texas Rangers Captain Inish Scull) and Rachel Griffiths (as Scull's horny wife). As the tale begins in 1858, Call and McCrae, some years away from becoming the cattlemen depicted in Lonesome Dove, are Rangers serving under the educated and eccentric Scull as they work to protect the territory against marauding Comanches, led by the stern, vengeful Buffalo Hump (Wes Studi) and his crazed son, Blue Duck (Adam Beach). When Scull's horse is stolen by one of the Indians, he sets out to retrieve the beast, promoting both Call and McRae to Captain, and the rest of the story revolves primarily around them; in fact, although there's a reasonable amount of action (including the Comanche raid on Austin that opens Part Two), Comanche Moon is much less plot-dependent than character-driven, and it is Call (tough, taciturn, and totally clueless when it comes to the fair sex) and best friend McRae (an open-hearted, self-described jester) who are the most engaging of the bunch as they navigate the deep waters of their work and love lives (McRae with Clara and Call with the prostitute Maggie Tilton, played by Elizabeth Banks). McMurtry and co-writer Diana Ossana's dialogue manages to be at once plain and poetic, colorful and poignant, and regardless of what's actually happening onscreen, the miniseries has a light, often whimsical charm that separates it from most Westerns made for big and small screen alike. Extras include a "making of" featurette and more. --Sam Graham Stills from Comanche Moon (click for larger image) Beyond Comanche Moon 
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 66
 How Did Lonesome Dove Get Its Name? February 5, 2008
Sky (New York)
73 out of 74 found this review helpful
Just in case you're either new to the Lonesome Dove series, or you're wondering if this DVD is the complete miniseries but you're confused by the title "second chapter"....This is indeed the complete Comanche Moon series DVD, and it's the "second chapter" because the chronology of the story is:
-Dead Man's Walk
-Comanche Moon
-Lonesome Dove
-Streets of Laredo
Although, the way The Lonesome Dove book series was written by Larry McMurtry fell in this order:
-Lonesome Dove (1985)
-Streets Of Laredo (1993)
-Dead Man's Walk (1995)
-Comanche Moon (1997)
Lonesome Dove, the novel and the miniseries, were as classic as classic gets. The Novel is one of the only books that I've ever read more than once. And the miniseries adaptation is just as memorable. The miniseries starred Robert Duvall as Augustus McCrae, Tommy Lee Jones as Woodrow Call, Rick Schroder as Newt, Diane Lane as Lorena Wood, Danny Glover as Joshua Deets, Robert Urich as Jake Spoon and Anjelica Huston as Clara Allen. What a line up of A-listers giving A-list performances. Duvall and Jones absolutely nailed the characters created by McMurtry in the novel. And Director Simon Wincer really preserved the integrity of the novel.
Streets of Laredo and Dead Man's Walk were good books, and adapted to fair-at-best miniseries. So when I saw that Comanche Moon was coming to CBS as the final book adaptation miniseries in January 2008, I was not that excited. But I couldn't have been more pleasantly surprised. Comanche Moon was a very good book and the miniseries was equally satisfying.
In Comanche Moon we find McCrae and Call as Texas Rangers as the Civil War is ending. They aren't involved in the Civil War as much as they are still battling the Comanches as well the cruel and diabolical bandit Ahumado. Val Kilmer is Captain Skull, and together with Gus, Woodrow and some other rangers they head out to the plains to get the bad guys.
There's a good amount of violence in some sequences, but some of the brutalities in the book have been tamed down for TV. (I.e. in the book Captain Skull's eyelids are removed by one of Ahumado's henchmen as a form of torture; that treatment is completely removed from the TV series.)
The miniseries producers did a smart thing: They brought back Wincer in the director's chair. And he once again brought a McMurtry novel to life with class and integrity. Comanche Moon (the novel or the miniseries) is no classic like Lonesome Dove was, but it was highly entertaining and enjoyable. However, like the last third of the novel, the Comanche Moon miniseries comes to grueling slow-down (in part 3 of the 3-part series). But it didn't take away from the enjoyment of watching Gus, Call and their crew as young, Pre-Lonesome Dove Texas Rangers looking for their place in life and trying to preserve life for others.
Steve Zahn is Gus McCrae and Karl Urban is Woodrow Call. They clearly read the book, watched the first miniseries and got some terrific direction from Director Wincer; they really captured the essence of their characters. And Val Kilmer should get an award for his portrayal of Captain Skull. There are some other popular (TV) actors in Comanche Moon, and they all combine to give us a very good CBS miniseries based on a very good book.
If you missed Comanche Moon on TV and you liked Lonesome Dove, you'll find this DVD quite enjoyable...with no commercials. Oh, and just how did the town of Lonesome Dove get its name?...Well, you'll just have to add this DVD to yer cart to find that out, pards.
 Extended Version Is Good News February 13, 2008
Victoria A. Wildermuth (Odessa, TX USA)
40 out of 41 found this review helpful
The important news for anyone considering purchase of this DVD is that it is the extended version -- which means that all the stuff CBS cut out so that they could squeeze in 8 million commercials is back. This is 284 minutes WITHOUT commercials. Regardless . . . Comanche Moon is a quality production . . . a very rare thing on TV today. The story is intelligent and the acting quality very good. Many critics roasted Val Kilmer, calling his performance over the top. I have news, folks . . . the character he plays was intended to be over the top. This is a very refreshing mini-series. Most of what we get on TV today is total garbage. Watch Steve Zahn reprise Robert Duvall's role. It's worth the price of the DVD just to see Zahn in this serious role. And Wes Studi is great as Buffalo Hump. For anyone who loved the Lonesome Dove mini-series, this is a must have. This is where it all began, pardner. It's great fun seeing the characters at this early stage in their lives and trying to figure out who is who and remembering what happens to them later. Ever wonder how Blue Duck got so nuts? Highly recommended if you like quality TV!
-Hey Cisco, hey Pancho January 18, 2008
Richard Schulman (Bristol)
22 out of 26 found this review helpful
I have been waiting to remember why I loved the first Lonesome Dove and basically not liking any that followed. The friendship between Woodrow
and Cal while the horror goes on is similar to our sit at home watching TV
America. It is a nice Yin Yang dark and light that reflects our real world.
Friendship is how we get through all the BS. Comanche Moon with all the
the excellent production values and excellent acting had me whistling in appreciation; I was not bothered a bit by the historical mistakes because the charm of the characters had me smiling. Sequels are tough and it is
hard to live up our memories of a great series. Comanche Moon completes
the saga: the beginning journey that illuminates Lonesome Dove's
bitter sweets themes.
 "Don't take up with any hoodlums. We'd hate to have to hang you." April 3, 2009
Thomas F. Redmond (Cleveland, OH)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
"Commanche Moon", is a fairly interesting prequel to "Lonsome Dove", which I think most LD fans will appreciate.
While Gus McCrae and Woodrow Call as played by Steve Zahn and Karl Urban may take some getting used to, by the film's conclusion, the actors are firmly established as their characters. Zahn does a great job of portraying the McCrae character as fleshed out by Robert Duvall, but anytime he would be situated next to Urban, I found myself wishing that someone had put him on a soap box or something, to add a few inches.
Karl Urban as Call was as wooden as the Tommy Lee Jones Call, but Val Kilmer as Captain Inish Scull is great. I was a little surpised at how well the film followed the book in how this character, and his antagonists were true to McMurty's vision.
If you're looking for answers to your questions about "Lonesome Dove", "Commanche Moon" pretty well illustrates the prior exploits of most of the LD characters and the reasons for their actions. Buffalo Hump and son, Blue Duck are well represented. Maggie Tilton is only part of the dialogue in "Lonsome Dove", but in "Commanche Moon", her relationship to Call is far more expanded and explained, especially in comparison to the earlier "Dead Man's Walk".
Even more revealing, "Commanche Moon" also goes into some detail concerning the prior exploits of Jake Spoon and his relationship to McCrae and Call. "Don't take up with any hoodlums. We'd hate to have to hang you," is something spoken to Spoon by McCrae towards the end of the film that is said in jest, but LD fans will be able to immediately pick up on the irony.
Like "Lonsome Dove", there were various points where I, as a viewer, thought that the story could end, but then surprisingly, the story continued. Therefore, when the end of "Commanche Moon" finally did come, it was sort of a surprise. The good thing about the ending itself is that it is an apt lead-in to "Lonesome Dove", which, timeline-wise, begins only about ten years later.
"Commanche Moon" isn't a great film, like "Lonesome Dove", but it's a very good one, and I think, a better addition to the LD series than "Dead Man's Walk" or "The Streets of Laredo".
I've given it five stars because it doesn't need to great to be enjoyable, and I really enjoyed "Commanche Moon".
Comanche Moon: It's Own Movie December 16, 2008
O. Broman
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
When I first saw "Comanche Moon," I too compared it to "Lonesome Dove," (in my opinion, one of, if not the best Western movie ever made). But watching it since, I've learned to watch it for what it is as it's own movie, trying not to compare the actors in "Moon" with those in "Dove." You know what? It's a pretty damn good cowboy movie.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 66
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