J.C. Roberts

Brad Pitt stars as legendary Wild West outlaw Jesse James in Chopper director Andrew Dominik's cinematic rendering of the events that would eventually bring about the death of the man rumored be the "fastest gun in the West." An eager recruit into James' notorious gang, Robert Ford eventually grows jealous of the famed outlaw. When Robert and his brother Charlie sense an opportunity to kill James, their murderous action elevates their target to near mythical status. Casey Affleck stars as Robert Ford and Sam Shepard co-stars as Frank James -- Jesse's devoted sibling and partner in crime. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The backdrop for this epic Western, which aired in August 2002 on the Hallmark Channel, will be familiar to fans of the genre and students of Western history. The Johnson County War took place in northern Wyoming in April 1892, growing out of the familiar story of big-money ranchers who suspected homesteader neighbors of rustling. Screenwriters Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana adapted Frederick Manfred's 1957 novel, Riders of Judgment, which used some of the events and people but changed the names, including the county (which becomes Bighorn) and the main town (from Buffalo to Antelope). Michael Cimino's Heaven's Gate (1981) also employed elements of the Johnson County War in its story. Manfred's book and this film center on Cain Hammett (Tom Berenger), a lonesome cowboy who hankers for Rory (Michelle Forbes); she has married his younger brother Dale (Adam Storke) in spite of the fact that she really loves Cain. A third Hammett brother, Harry (Luke Perry), unlike his honest, homesteading siblings, is a rustler who runs afoul of Marshal Hunt Lawton (Burt Reynolds), who is in the employ of wealthy Lord Peter (Christopher Cazenove), an Englishman in cahoots with the owners of big ranches to exterminate all of the homesteaders, guilty or innocent. Cain Hammett's real-life counterpart, Nate Champion, was a prime target of mercenaries hired by the big cattlemen, and the siege of Cain's cabin, which was the opening salvo in the war, provides the film with its climax. ~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide

Rural Wyoming is the setting for this made-for-cable romantic drama with ribald comic overtones. It has been two years since the husband of young Dr. Garnet Hadley (Penelope Ann Miller) was killed by a wild bull, but Garnet is still in love with her deceased soulmate and has no intention of remarrying. This doesn't stop Garnet's overbearing father-in-law Mike (Barry Corbin) from trying to match her up with every eligible bachelor in the county--most of whom are textbook examples of the word "loser." Finally, Mike resorts to extortion, using financial pressure to force Garnet to attend an upcoming country centennial fair with a male escort. Aided and abetted by her best friend Jill (Barbara Gates), Garnet tries to pull the wool over Mike's eyes by hiring Jill's brother, aspiring composer Bryan (Brett Cullen), to pose as her lover--even going so far as to stage a bedroom scene to convince Mike to mind his own business (nothing really happens, of course, but it sure looks convincing!) The fun really begins when Jenny (Allison Hossack), the long-distance girlfriend of Brett, shows up at the fair, just as Brett has begun to fall in love with his cardboard sweetie. Originally pitched as a theatrical feature (undoubtedly with bigger "names" in the cast), The Hired Heart made its Lifetime network bow on October 13, 1997. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide