Starring: Sam Shepard, Eric Roberts, Donnie Wahlberg, Brad Rowe, Amelia Heinle, Randy Quaid

Director: Uli Edel
Released: 1999

Mood: If you keep getting too much bad news and need to escape to a Western that still gives you action but also soothes your soul.

How I came to watch Purgatory the other day was through a series of fortuitous and possibly supernatural events.

Two weeks ago I was alphabetizing my dad’s massive DVD collection and, of course, picking some to take home. My dad is a huge Western fan, which is how I got into them as a kid. I spotted Purgatory and immediately grabbed it.

The reason was because I first saw this movie on a ranch visit with Jaye, my late father-in-law. He had the DVD and insisted I would like it. Westerns were a big bonding point for us, too, and since I started this website I’ve always meant to find it again and review it.

Then the other night my husband and I felt – and I swear this is true – COMPELLED to watch it, even though I had planned to watch a different movie. And just now I’ve realized that I’m publishing the review and telling all of you to go watch it on the five-year anniversary of Jaye’s passing.

Purgatory is, as the title suggests, about a group of people caught in between this world and the next one.

The movie opens with a band of outlaws robbing a bank, led by Blackjack Britton (Eric Roberts) and Cavin Guthrie (Peter Stormare). There’s a ton of well-shot action right out of the gate.

The posse rides hard to escape, until they spot a mirage-like place that beckons to them. It’s a town called Refuge. They expect harsh treatment but are greeted politely by the sheriff (Sam Shepard) and his judgey-looking deputy (Donnie Wahlberg). They’re offered free drinks and invited to stay, provided that they don’t cuss in town.

None of Refuge’s residents carry guns, and when a church bell tolls, they all immediately go into the church for hours. Some of them also look an awful lot like certain infamous gunmen of the Wild West… but that’s impossible, because those guys are dead.

Blackjack’s men quickly get bored and start taking advantage of the town’s hospitality, causing chaos and planning a robbery. Youngest gang member Sonny (Brad Rowe) tries to get the people of Refuge to stand up for themselves – but they have a lot more to lose than just their lives.

Purgatory is a TNT movie that’s just 94 minutes long and apparently was filmed for a measly $178K ($344.6K today). But believe me when I say that it has the bells and whistles you want in a Western:

• Great pacing
• Lots of action
• Unique story
• Strong acting

Sure, it’s a little predictable – the title literally gives away the hook. But that doesn’t matter, because the story unfolds in a way that’s thoughtful yet highly entertaining. I mean, it managed to hook two of the biggest lifelong Western fans I know, so that’s saying something.

Purgatory’s writer and co-producer Gordon Dawson had prior credentials that included episodes of Bret Maverick, the OG Walker, Texas Ranger, and Bonanza, plus other shows with James Garner and Chuck Norris AND Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Clearly this guy was in the perfect position to deliver a script for a religious supernatural Western.

There were times when I got Westworld vibes, because Sonny (Brad Rowe) was essentially a comic book nerd living his best life in an alternate universe where he could interact with his dime novel heroes. And there were other times where I was seeing influences, whether intentional or not, of everything from High Noon to the first bartender scene in The Shining.

Rewatching Purgatory also reminded me how much I love a kind of subtle Weird Western, because I had the same instant connection with Showdown in Yesteryear.

SPOILERS AHEAD

Lots of great performances in Purgatory, but also no bombs. Even though, again, this isn’t a huge budget movie, everyone is delivering something that feels authentic.

• Sam Shepard is commanding as the Sheriff /Wild Bill Hickock; I obviously always want my Wild Bills to have long hair and dress like dandies, but it’s a good interpretation
• Eric Roberts is a fantastic bad guy, he really gives you that “I don’t give a f*ck” guy who thinks he’s invincible
• Donnie Wahlberg is among the most memorable as the deputy/Bill the Kid, with his cagey manner and ability to look like he could suddenly flip at any time
• Brad Rowe is the earnest, romantic that balances the tough guys
• Amelia Heinle shows how well experience with soaps (2626 episodes of The Young and the Restless!) can lend to Western drama
• RG Armstrong flexes his character acting skills and reminds us of his icon status in his second-to-last performance
• Randy Quaid, while too old and stocky to be my ideal Doc Holliday, is still solid and it’s extra fun that the younger Dennis Quaid played Doc just a few years earlier in the epic Wyatt Earp
• Saginaw Grant as the silent Gatekeeper is critical to the story and mood; this legend was an award-winning musician, a Marine veteran of the Korean War, a Pow Wow dancer, a motivational speaker, and the Hereditary Chief of the Sac and Fox Nation

Purgatory’s score is particularly good at casting you into the time and place, but not leading you to conclusions so you can enjoy the small surprises.

On a small side, Purgatory (the place) is meant to cleanse people who lived a reasonably good life but need to be fully purified to go to heaven. Yet we have Billy the Kid, Doc Holliday, Wild Bill, and Jesse James – guy who weren’t in the position to get into Purgatory in the first place if we go by the books – doing their time in Refuge and getting cleansed. I’m not sure how that logics compared to the other townspeople who probably didn’t kill a single person in their lives, but I fully accept the premise because I just want everyone to feel better. The world is shitty right now.

My overall consensus is that even if you don’t have an otherworldly driving force guiding you to watch it, you should still totally check out this movie. It’s somehow feel-good but also high-action, and I really love that fusion.