If you love Yellowstone and Kevin Costner, then you may just love this Western drama that’s currently trending on Netflix.
Released in 1994, Wyatt Earp stars Costner as the eponymous, real-life lawman who would go on to be involved in the O.K. Corral gunfight in 1881. The movie is a biographical epic of Earp’s life.
The film features a terrific ensemble cast that includes the late Catherine O’Hara, and while it received mixed reviews from critics at the time, it’s found more favor with fans over time.
Watch With Us breaks down why Wyatt Earp deserves its spot in the Netflix Top 10.
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‘Wyatt Earp’ Chronicles the Life of a Fascinating Real-Life Figure
Wyatt Earp takes an in-depth look at Earp’s life from his teenage years during the Civil War, living on his family’s farm in Iowa, to becoming a lawman in towns like Wichita and Dodge City in Kansas and Tombstone, Arizona. From a young age, Earp is taught that only two things really matter in life: family and the law. Thus, Earp is flanked by his brothers James (David Andrews), Morgan (Linden Ashby) and Virgil (Michael Madsen), in addition to friend Doc Holliday (Dennis Quaid), in their eventual confrontation with outlaws at the climactic O.K. Corral, involving the Clanton and McLaury gangs.
As opposed to taking a more mythical or fantastical approach to this real-life material, director Lawrence Kasdan and co-writer Dan Gordon instead give Earp’s life a grittier, more realistic feel in addition to being a psychological portrait of the famous lawman. Rather than being a simple action epic, Wyatt Earp is far more interested in details and nuance, and the internal burden that Earp carries throughout his life — which includes a violent, dark side to Earp’s character.
The Long Runtime Gives Earp’s Life the Richness It Deserves
While some biographical films attempt to sum up a celebrity or important historical figure in just one or two short hours, Wyatt Earp gives its subject the courtesy of a more than three-hour film. Because of this ample runtime, more care is given to the historical detail and accuracy, giving way to more comprehensive storytelling. We’re given this excess time with Earp’s life from adolescence through middle age, and it allows for a deeper understanding of his psychology and his evolution of self, leading up to the major historical event that everyone knows him for.
Thus, far from a fast-paced epic, Wyatt Earp is a slow-burn character study with a Western setting that feels authentic instead of romanticized. Earp’s character arc is incredibly thorough, and the approach to depicting his character even has something of a documentary feel to it. While the slow pacing and occasionally disorganized narrative may turn some people off, those who enjoy biographical films that are concerned with the facts in addition to telling a compelling story will appreciate the lengths that Wyatt Earp goes to achieve this.
‘Wyatt Earp’ Is Character-Driven With a Strong Supporting Cast
While a movie like Tombstone — also about Wyatt Earp and the O.K. Corral — is more centered on the immediate lead-up to and action of the conflict at the O.K. Corral, Wyatt Earp gives a deeper focus to its sprawling cast of characters covering multiple eras of Earp’s life. For instance, Gene Hackman gives a terrific performance as Nicholas Earp, Wyatt’s stern and influential father, while Quaid infuses Doc Holliday with a vulnerability that rings true to the character.
In contrast to Tombstone and Kurt Russell‘s charisma-driven portrayal of Earp, Wyatt Earp finds strength in Costner’s more reserved depiction, more suited for a biopic approach. But besides Costner, the cast of Wyatt Earp is ridiculously stacked. The rest of the supporting cast includes the always-great O’Hara, who portrays Allie Earp, in addition to Bill Pullman, Mark Harmon, Isabella Rossellini, Tom Sizemore and Adam Baldwin.
Stream Wyatt Earp now on Netflix.
