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Nearly 20 years after it debuted, nobody talks about this great Western that Karl Urban and Val Kilmer made together. While there are many Val Kilmer Westerns in existence, Tombstone bests them all by a considerable margin.
Not only should Kilmer have been Oscar-nominated for his turn as Doc Holliday- which is by turns hilarious and heartbreaking - but the movie itself is an embarrassment of riches. It has an incredible script, a superb cast, and there's a reason it's considered one of the best Westerns of the 1990s.
Karl Urban, on the other hand, doesn't have many Westerns to speak of. In fact, on the movie front, all he really has is Priest, a genre mash-up best described as an anime-inspired, post-apocalyptic remake of The Searchers. One hidden gem on Urban's CV is Comanche Moon, a miniseries based on the novel of the same name by Larry McMurtry.
This 2008 series is a midquel in the Lonesome Dove saga, and is especially notable as Simon Wincer, who helmed the original, acclaimed 1989 Lonesome Dove miniseries, returned as director. Comanche Moon cast Urban as Texas Ranger Woodrow F. Call - played by Tommy Lee Jones in the 1989 series - with Steve Zahn inheriting the role of "Gus" McCrae from Robert Duvall.
Comanche Moon Is The Final Lonesome Dove Miniseries
Comanche Moon's timeline might be confusing to newcomers. It's the final entry (to date) in the Lonesome Dove series, yet it takes place in the middle of Call and Gus' years as Texas Rangers. The first season was followed by direct sequels Return to Lonesome Dove (1993) and Streets of Laredo (1995); after that came the prequels Dead Man's Walk (1996) and, finally, Comanche Moon.
Sadly, the final installment received tepid reviews, which were largely unwarranted in hindsight. The series certainly has its flaws, where it can be intense and deathly serious one moment, and quite goofy the next. Even so, it's an engrossing series with a cast list that includes Elizabeth Banks, Wes Studi, Linda Cardellini, and Melanie Lynskey, in addition to an array of recognizable character actors like Rachel Griffiths and Adam Beach (Windtalkers).
In addition to Tommy Lee Jones and Karl Urban, Call has also been played by Jonny Lee Miller, Jon Voight and James Garner in the various Lonesome Dove miniseries.
It should come as little surprise that Kilmer gets the flashiest, most scene-stealing part as Inish Scull. Neither the writing nor Kilmer's performance is on par with Tombstone, but Comanche Moon still receives a jolt of energy whenever he appears. All credit should go to leading men though, with Urban and Zahn managing to recapture some of the amazing chemistry that Duvall and Jones had in Lonesome Dove.
Comanche Moon Deserves To Be Rediscovered
Comanche Moon received decent ratings, but left little in the way of cultural impact after it aired. Again, it's not even close to Lonesome Dove or Tombstone in quality, but there's a lot to love about it. Again, it's got a stacked cast and while Kilmer might be hamming up a storm, there are more nuanced turns by Elizabeth Banks or the always great Wes Studi to keep things grounded.
Wincer is an undersung Western director too, as Quincy Down Under or Monte Walsh proves, and his return to the Lonesome Dove world is most welcome. Comanche Moon sometimes struggles to fill out its six-hour runtime, but the fleshed-out characters and visceral setpieces make up for that.
Overall, it's a rock-solid Western and a worthy finale to the Lonesome Dove saga. Those on the lookout for an underseen and undersung Western from the late 2000s should give Comanche Moon a chance, since any outing from the genre that pairs both Karl Urban and Val Kilmer merits a curiosity viewing, at the very least. If you absolutely must watch one entry from the Lonesome Dove series, however, the original is the way to go.
