X
- 1980
- R
- United Artists
- 3 h 39 m
- 1980
- R
- United Artists
- 3 h 39 m
Summary A dramatization of the real-life Johnson County War in 1890 Wyoming, in which a Sheriff born into wealth, attempts to protect immigrant farmers from rich cattle interests.
Directed By: Michael Cimino
Written By: Michael Cimino
- 1980
- R
- United Artists
- 3 h 39 m
- 1980
- R
- United Artists
- 3 h 39 m
Heaven's Gate
57
6.1
Where to Watch
Summary A dramatization of the real-life Johnson County War in 1890 Wyoming, in which a Sheriff born into wealth, attempts to protect immigrant farmers from rich cattle interests.
Directed By: Michael Cimino
Written By: Michael Cimino
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 15 Critic Reviews
57
47% Positive
7 Reviews
7 Reviews
20% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
33% Negative
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 15 Critic Reviews
57
47% Positive
7 Reviews
7 Reviews
20% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
33% Negative
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
It is a demanding film, without a doubt – but a passionate one.
It's a film of rare beauty and scope, a feast for the eyes and a harrowing, unflinching meditation on the cruelty of capitalism. It rivals William Friedkin's Sorceror in its bone-deep cynicism and eviscerating take on the free market's coal-black heart of darkness.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 10 User Ratings
6.1
50% Positive
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
30% Mixed
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
20% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 10 User Ratings
6.1
50% Positive
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
30% Mixed
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
20% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.
A grandiose Western based on the Johnson County War of 1892, when cattle barons brought in mercenaries to massacre immigrant settlers, it suffers badly from narrative incoherence. But there’s a grand romantic sweep to the action (enacted by a solid cast including Kris Kristofferson, Christopher Walken and Isabelle Huppert), the set-pieces are majestic and its disenchanted view of the American frontier myth still rings ominously true.
The story is both slow moving and hard to follow, but the locations and period details offer plenty to ponder.
The first scenes of Heaven’s Gate are so energetic and beautiful that anyone who knows the saga of the $35 million epic might begin to think it was going to be worth every penny. Unfortunately the balance of director Michael Cimino’s film is so confusing, so overlong at three-and-a-half hours and so ponderous that it fails to work at almost every level.
Well, it really is a stinker, a compendium of The Deer Hunter's weaknesses (of plotting, narration, dialogue, and character) with few of its lyrical strengths.
Nothing in the movie works properly. For all of the time and money that went into it, it's jerry-built, a ship that slides straight to the bottom at its christening. Heaven's Gate is something quite rare in movies these days - an unqualified disaster.
Awards
Academy Awards, USA
• 1 Nomination
Razzie Awards
• 1 Win & 5 Nominations
The Stinkers Bad Movie Awards
• 1 Win & 4 Nominations
