Special Features:
Theatrical Trailer  �  Interview with Author Larry McMurty  �  Interview with Producer Suazanne de Passe  �  Western Trivia Games

Lonesome Dove is based on Larry McMurtry's Pulitzer Prize winning novel. I have not read the book, but this miniseries perfectly captures the sense of adventure and discovery that were part of the development of the American West.

Augustis McCrae (Robert Duvall) and Woodrow Call (Tommy Lee Jones) are two former Texas Rangers who live in an extremely small Texas town called Lonesome Dove near the Mexico border. As civilization moved in, they helped rid the area of Indians and bandits. Now that their job is done there is not a whole lot for them to do but sit around their small home and argue with each other. Occasionally they head into Mexico to rustle horses or cattle, but you can tell that much of the excitement of their former lives is missing. When Jake Spoon (Robert Urich) one of their former partners returns and mentions the wide open spaces of Montana, Gus and Woodrow agree that they would like to see some country that has still not been touched by civilization before it is all gone. They decide to rustle a bunch of cattle and horses and start the 2500 mile journey. Along the way their past and present collide in a bunch of interesting ways.

The miniseries is divided into four approximately 1:30 episodes.

Part I - Leaving:
The first half an hour of this episode is, in my opinion, the weakest in the whole miniseries. Obviously you need to introduce each of the characters and their current situation but the pacing wasn't quite there. It is a good set up, just a little slow. Some of the great details of part one are Gus paying $50 to take a poke at Lorena (Diane Lane) and the conflict this creates for Jake and Newt's (Ricky Schroeder) first trip into Mexico.

Part II - On The Trail
This is actually my favorite part of the miniseries. We really learn a lot about Gus in this part. When a bartender is giving him some problems, he takes care of the situation real quick. There is no doubt of his abilities after this confrontation. The ambush and rescue scenes are flawlessly put together and a couple of the story lines start to come together nicely. We also learn a lot about Gus' philosophy on life which is basically: Things happen, you can't change them, move on and live your life.

Part III - The Plains
Some of the highlights in this section are Jake and a gang of thieves he hooks up with and the introduction to Claire (Anjelica Houston). The chemistry between Huston and Duvall is amazing.

Part IV - Return
Part IV has many great character details. At the top of the list is Gus wanting to hunt the buffalo just for the sport of it because one day they will be gone. Losing his leg was not part of his plan and although he ignores his own philosphy of life by not getting his infected second leg removed he goes out on his own terms. We also see how commited Woodrow actually is to Gus when he hauls Gus' body 2500 miles back to Texas. The statement that Woodrow is a man of vision that comes up at the end is a great example of the legends of the West.

Picture and sound quality on this title are just average. Everything is reproduced well enough but the blacks are a little shallow and the picture gets pretty grainy at times. For something that was released in 2000, it should look better than this. Overall it has many of the same quality problems as the first season of The Sopranos.

Extras included on the DVD are an interview with Larry McMurtry and executive producer Suzanne de Passe. Also included are a Western Historical Trivia game and a trailer.