Name: Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2 Review: A Work in Progress
Item: Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 2
Author: Arash Nahandian

Welcome back to the wide-open vistas and scattered settlements of Kevin Costner’s Horizon. This installment picks up where the last left off, continuing the story of Western expansion through interconnected tales. Costner wears multiple hats as director, writer, and star, juggling an epic scope across hours of landscape shots and pioneers’ travels.

Chapter 2 centers on wagon trains navigating plains and hardscrabble towns like Horizon, which sprouts from the dust on promises of opportunity. We rejoin favorites like resilient widow Frances and taciturn gunslinger Hayes, dealing with dangers native to the untamed frontier—from the elements and each other. Harsh realities especially face pioneer women, as some find independence while others fall victim to man’s brutality.

Costner plainly loves the Western genre, but ambition sometimes outpaces execution. Nonlinear editing between plots disorients, and character arcs feel rushed. Still, patient viewers can immerse in rich production design and performances that add nuance to stock archetypes. Stunning cinematography also captures the vast, unforgiving terrain these homesteaders brave.

Initial critical reception was mixed for the first installment. But for those who enjoyed its soapy melodrama against epic vistas, Chapter 2 promises more of the same frontier fare—for better or worse.

Frontier Tales

Horizon Chapter 2 continues juggling a heap of storylines amongst Utah’s western expanse. Costner manages multiple moving parts, but narrative cohesion suffers versus the first.

The wagon train and Frances hold strongest. Luke Wilson shines guiding emigrants across plains fraught with breakdowns and his passengers’ inner strife. Frances too proves her mettle, rebuilding with her daughter after a loss.

Other arcs feel rushed. Hayes remains a man of few words, drifting from one gunfight to the next. Little advances his motivations. Marigold hides more than she acts, stranded from potential romance. Their slices feel spare compared to others.

Representation sees mixed results. Native Americans recede to background, while the new Chinese community supplies able hands but little personality. Both deserve richer portrayals that lend depth to Horizon’s diverse peoples.

Costner strives to show multiple sides yet struggles weaving disparate threads to a unifying conclusion. Story beats leave question marks where resolutions should follow. Without a clearer throughline, interest risks fizzling by the finale.

Production values remain stellar. But compelling characters and their compelling journeys are what pull viewers West. On the tale-telling frontier, tighter plotting would serve Chapter 2 better.

Frontier Craftsmanship

Some parts of Chapter 2 may be rough around the edges, but its production values remain polished as all get out. Michael Muro’s camera work is downright pretty, finding beauty in Utah’s sprawling terrain.

Threads may fray in places, but costume designer Lisa Lovaas ensures folks look fine as can be. Authentic prairie chic brings frontier fashion front and center. Prairie dresses and embroidered waistcoats feel plucked straight from history books.

John Debney’s score swells during climaxes, transporting audiences to old cowboy pictures of the past. The orchestral arrangement captures the genre’s grand nostalgia while upholding cinematic suspense.

Visuals and wardrobe breathe life into the dusty era, making frontier hardship seem charming rather than chronic. When plots hit snags, eye candy carries viewers through. Epics live or die by production prowess, and in craftsmanship, Horizon excels.

While the story stumbles at times, its look remains top-rate. When tales wander, heartwarming habitat means scenic satisfaction, if little else. On the Western range, few capture the landscape with care like Costner and company.

Frontier Themes

Costner aims to shine a light on the frontier’s dimmer themes. With gritty realism, he shows women facing dangers their sex rarely saw on screen.

Diversity gets some due, even if folks outside the main get short shrift. Native Americans and Chinese immigrants feel more props than people. Both deserved fuller representation for Horizon to feel wholly authentic.

Westward expansion looms large as settlers push into native lands. But Manifest Destiny’s shadows get faint treatment. Darker sides of humanity also get glossed, despite a lawless setting rife for exploring our nature.

Disconnected arcs make themes feel scattered. Stronger throughlines could’ve fused disparate pieces into a cohesive whole. As is, ideas start promising but fizzle before fruition.

Costner swings for worthy subject matter. But greater depth may have emerged with tightened plotting. His frontier deserves examining humanity’s brighter and bleaker hues in equal measure.

Thespian Trails

Amid winding tales, some thespians truly shine. Sienna Miller and Luke Wilson bring nuance to complex leads, imbuing grim reality within Frances and the wagon chief. Will Patton too excels as the gruff yet gentle patriarch.

Kevin Costner rides herd competently as always, though Hayes remains thicker in mystique than psychology. More depth may have emerged with tighter focus on fewer characters.

Many supporting stocks feel stock-iin and out sans substance. Little distinguishes most aside from costume cues. Repeated players also lack follow-through between scenes.

An oversized lineup cuts character time too thin. Viewers grasp essence but not soul, left wanting deeper dives into personalities woven through the frontier drama. Strong central performances deserve a richer supporting cast to match their caliber.

Trailblazing Troubles

Costner shows progression as director from the first installment. Chapter 2 picks up its pace in spots, with brisker scenes that engage more than before.

However, where the separate plots truly clash remains a challenge. Abrupt cuts between story arcs still jar, leaving a sense of missing crucial context. Flashes of what came prior would’ve helped smoothen the transitions.

At over three hours, slow pacing permeates too much of the film. Individual set pieces excite, yet structural seams weaken the whole. Splendid cinematography and performances deserve context to shine, not get lost between plot hurdles.

Talent and vision clearly exist, but tighter direction could’ve wrangled this western’s wandering strands. Chapter 2 trails its predecessor in places yet blazes new ground in others. With editing finesse, Costner’s frontier fare might find truer north.

Sunset on the Frontier

Buried amongst Horizon’s ambitions lie seeds of a truly epic Western. Under sweeping vistas and lavish production lies potential for rich character exploration.

Yet Chapter 2 suggests this format hinders full blossoming. Jumbling plotlines without cohesion starve stories and people of depth. Maintaining momentum across future films could prove an uphill endeavor under this structure.

As a miniseries, perhaps Horizon’s scope may have shone without restrictions of its current design. With time to let characters and themes take root, this frontier drama could have flourished into its finest self.

In the end, Chapter 2 feels an endeavor of missed chances, glimpsing greatness amid gaps. But glimpses are not nothing—flickers of promise show Costner grasps the grandeur his vision aims to capture. With refining, Horizon may yet ride proudly into legend as Westerns past have ridden into history’s sunset.

The Review