Among the Willows – Movie Review
Director: Tyler Smith
Writer: Jeffrey Smith, David Novak (Screenplay)
Cast
- David Novak
- Jeffrey Smith (Don’t Look Up)
- Caryn Richman (The New Gidget)
- Sparkle Soojian
- Darrell Mapson
- D.T. Carney (John Dies at the End)
Plot: John Williams must swallow his pride to partner up with an ex-friend in hopes of tracking down those responsible for murdering his family.
Runtime: 1 Hour 28 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Among the Willows starts when John Williams (Novak) discovers his family murdered. He turns to an old friend Everett Stolls (Smith) for help tracking down the outlaws who murdered someone close to him.
The outlaws have taken Mary (Fouts) as a hostage as they look to escape. However, John’s relentless nature sees him putting together a crew to track them down.
Verdict on Among the Willows
Among the Willows is an action western following a man who goes in search of his family’s killers. He puts together a team of old friends as they go hunting for the outlaw gang that tore his family apart. Along the way, they put aside their differences and they look to achieve the greater good.
This is a western that uses the young reckless outlaw crew being tracked by an older wise group they have taken from. It is the story we have seen plenty of times before and is easily the simplest one to play with in the Western genre. The movie gets the core beats done well, to give us the moments we have come to expect. However, it never challenges to become one of the best in the genre. It tries to have shocking moments, but they don’t pay off.
Where to Watch
On UK digital 20 May from Miracle Media
Final Thoughts – Among the Willows is a by-the-book western.
One reply on “Among the Willows (2023) Movie Review”
A great review. I am not a huge fan of westerns, so I don’t think I will check this one out. It has become a genre forever associated with a bygone past era. Audiences no longer flock to theaters to see cowboys in action. There was once a time when the genre was successful during the 1950’s. During this time, audiences had an interest in seeing cowboys engaging in battles. For instance, John Wayne’s “The Searchers” is one of the best westerns ever made that changed the genre. Here’s why I recommend it strongly:
https://huilahimovie.reviews/2024/05/12/the-searchers-1956-movie-review/