THE LAST COWBOY

REVIEWED BY RISSI C.

Our rating: 4 out of 5

Because of: language, thematic elements

Rated:

Sometimes pride, a hurting heart or just plain stubbornness, can result in keeping you away from the people you love best; your family. For Jake Cooper (Jennie Garth), her family fell apart the day her mama died. Blaming her father Will (Lance Henriksen) for her loss, she leaves never to look back.

Until eight years later, when her grandfather Charlie passes away and Jake returns to attend the funeral. Jake finds most things the same as when she left. Right hand man Amos is still working along with her father at their family ranch and is still having to play referee between headstrong father and daughter, while her father is still the same stubborn man who acts as if Jake isn’t even there. What Jake wasn’t expecting to find is the sorry financial condition in which her grandfathers’ ranch has fallen into. During the reading of Charlie’s will, both Jake and Will are surprised to learn he has given them joint ownership of the “Dry Creek Ranch,” something they both find objectionable. As they argue over what’s to be done, Amos once again must play the mediator in the matter, telling Will to go talk to Jake, and let her have her say without butting in, and then him getting his say. When Will goes to fetch his daughter that morning, he finds her room empty, without any message left as to where she’s gone.

As the work continues and the matter of the ranch is left hanging, Amos continues to encourage Will to call his daughter, to no avail. After eight years of not knowing what has happened in his daughters’ life or where she’s been, Will sees that Jake still harbors bitter feelings for him and he doesn’t want to have another confrontation with her. Jake does come back after settling her affairs in California with plans as to how they might keep the ranch going and a few surprises. As father and daughter attempt to come to terms with one another’s ideas, they must learn to work together in order to keep the ranch in the family. It may take a tragedy before they are able to put the past behind them and move forward with forgiveness. The Last Cowboy is a story of putting past mistakes behind you.

Originally airing on the Hallmark channel and then later being released on DVD, this drama is filled with both wonderful truths and some more regrettable faults. Jake and her father are at fault in their strained relationship, with neither one of them making an attempt to try and repair the damage that has been done. Even after eight years, Jake still has feelings of anger towards her father for “what {you} did to my mama." Amos tells her that she was too young to understand, which is a good point. As an adult who has struggled to get to where she is now, Jake should finally be able to understand. Will has never sat Jake down and actually been a real father to her.  As with all Hallmark films, this was pleasantly good by the conclusion and after time spent thinking on it, you see the better principles involved and realize that lessons are learned in the end it comes down to one thing: family matters. Which is an important value, all of us love our family and don’t know what we’d do without them, the older you get the more you realize that and it’s an important thing to appreciate.

The acting was great. Lance was well cast as a hardened rancher who is “the last of his kind." He looked the part and pulled it off well. Jennie Garth was decent enough in this role, I’ve only seen her in a couple of things, but have enjoyed her in both. Amos was the comedy of this movie; his part was very well written and probably the most amiable character of all. Morgan (Bradley Cooper) Jake’s friend and business partner was a nice addition to the screenplay and in the end is a big help to her. Content is fairly limited but still is worth mentioning. Language is quite frequent, including several minor profanities and a few misuses of the Lord’s name. There’s a brief passing remark about Will and Amos having sex, it being a joke after Amos tells Will he needs to have a foot rub in order to get rid of his headache. Despite its “comic” aspect, I found the “joke” unnecessary and awkward. A woman has a child she’s raising on her own and we’re left to decide whether or not she was married; from comments made, I’d say she wasn’t. Will goes into town upset when learning about something at the bank and punches someone. Some talk revolves around taking a person off of life support and whether or not it’s the right decision.

While The Last Cowboy does have its faults and its better points, I found it enjoyable and something I’ll continue to revisit. If this interests you as a film you may enjoy, I’d also recommend the Hallmark movie The Long Shot starring Julie Benz.