Reception
Early reviews of Appaloosa from the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival were lukewarm. Brad Frenette of the National Post said "the film feels double its 114-minute running time, but Appaloosa redeems itself through unexpected moments of levity, Harris's steady direction and the god amongst men, Lance Henriksen." Frenette also said Renee Zellweger is "mostly a bust" and Viggo Mortensen "oozes cool." Popjournalism reviewer Sarah Gopaul said Harris and Mortensen spend too much time talking and discussing their feelings, which she said made the film too light for the gritty Western genre. Gopaul said Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen delivered decent performances and that Renee Zellweger's character has more depth than the traditional romantic interest in a Western. The New Yorker’s David Denby called it “a well-made, satisfying, traditionalist Western with some odd quirks and turns.” Western history buffs note the Appaloosa breed of horse comes from over 1,000 miles from New Mexico where this story is set. The Appaloosa was the horse of the Nez Perce Indians of northeast Oregon, southeast Washington and especially north-central Idaho, where the tribal headquarters are located. Specifically, the area in and around the Palouse prairie is the region from which the name derives.
On Rotten Tomatoes, Appaloosa is currently rated at 76% on the Tomatometer, based on 149 reviews, and on IMDb is 6.8/10 from 32,442 users.
The film appeared on some critics' top ten lists of the best films of 2008. Ray Bennett of The Hollywood Reporter named it the 8th best film of 2008, and Mike Russell of The Oregonian named it the 10th best film of 2008.
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