Expecting a proudly classical, old-fashioned Western to be anything other than polarizing in our modern movie climate is a bit naive. And I say that as someone who didn’t initially consider the landscape when reading the first wave of reactions to “Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1” – the first big screen installment in Kevin Costner‘s decades-in-the-making, multi-film passion project. It only required a little thought for me to understand many of the responses that should have been easy to predict.

Truth be told, classic Westerns have (unfortunately) fallen out of fashion, and over the years tastes have changed dramatically. Today many people trend towards social-realistic dramas, pseudo arthouse edginess, and low-budget horror, occasionally cleansing their palates with a big studio blockbuster. So when something like “Horizon” comes along, it shouldn’t surprise us that it doesn’t resonate with everyone. And that’s perfectly fine.

But some of the shots taken at it have been petty and disingenuous. Such as labeling it a “vanity project”. Or the cries of nepotism because he cast his son in a small role. My advice: toss all of those things aside. “Horizon: An American Saga” is clearly near and dear to Costner’s heart which is a big reason he is personally bankrolling a huge portion of the films. And you can see his passion in nearly every second of this vast, immersive, and handsomely shot frontier epic.

As this first chapter clearly shows, the Horizon saga isn’t your prototypical narrative driven movie. As Costner himself has put it, “it’s a journey, not a plot movie” and some people may struggle with that. But having his intentions in mind, along with a grasp of his audacious multifaceted vision going forward, energizes “Chapter 1” and helps set the table for something that could be truly magnificent.

Make no mistake, there is a lot of introduction and table-setting in “Chapter 1” and all of it is building towards the release of “Chapter 2” which comes to theaters this August. Again, it is unquestionably unconventional. But it works extremely well mainly due to the attention Costner gives to the several main characters and their uniquely personal storylines. While Costner himself gets top billing, his character, Hayes Ellison, is only one piece of this amazing character-driven tapestry.

With “Horizon”, Costner sets out to give us a broad look at the American West through a variety of frontier experiences across Kansas, Wyoming, Montana, and other captivating territories. Written for the screen by Costner and author Jon Baird, the individual stories each have surprising depth and a dramatic heft that not only grabs your interest but leaves you looking forward to what lies ahead.

And while Costner proudly embraces the grand old-fashioned vistas and classic Western flavor, it’s impossible to put his film in such a tiny box. That’s because he takes a nuanced look at frontier life. Anything perceived as romanticizing the “Old West” is often countered by the realities of violence and savagery. And he doesn’t sugarcoat the numerous themes he unearths such as freedom, morality, justice, grief, family, greed, and retribution just to name a few.

Among the key characters we encounter is Costner’s Hayes Ellison, a former gunslinger who finds himself at odds with the thuggish Sykes family and their matriarch played by the always compelling Dale Dickey. He and a prostitute with a heart of gold named (go figure) Marigold (Abbey Lee) head to the mountains in hopes of avoiding a conflict with the Sykes bunch.

Elsewhere in the film’s most harrowing sequence, Frances Kittredge (a standout Sienna Miller) and her daughter Lizzy (Georgia MacPhail) barely survive a massacre of their settlement by an Apache war party. They’re taken in by the United States Calvary where she takes a liking to Lt. Trent Gephardt (Sam Worthington). We also meet members of a wagon train driven by their reluctant leader Matthew Van Weyden (Luke Wilson). And we follow a young boy, thirsty for revenge after his family is murdered. A series of unfortunate events puts him in the company of a brutal gang of killers butchering natives for profit.

An incredible ensemble not only brings these stories to life, but they also introduce personal stories within the stories. Admittedly it’s a lot to keep up with. But it’s worth the effort, in large part thanks to the superb performances from the main stars and sturdy reliables like Michael Rooker, Danny Huston, and Will Patton. Add in Costner’s bold and ambitious vision that trusts in his audience’s ability to understand what he’s going for as well as their willingness to go along on the journey. I know I’m ready. “Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1” is in theaters now.

VERDICT – 4.5 STARS