Part of Action Distraction
Sun, Jul 13 at 12:00pm: Introduction from musician and Belcourt staff member Jessica Breanne | BUY TICKETS
Loosely based on real events, TOMBSTONE is set in the lawless town of Tombstone, Arizona. When legendary gunsling lawman Wyatt Earp (Kurt Russell) seeks a peaceful retirement with his brothers Virgil (Sam Elliot) and Morgan (Bill Paxton) — the siblings soon discover that the town is under the violent grip of a ruthless gang of outlaws known as the Cowboys. Realizing he can’t hang up his holster just yet, Wyatt joins forces with his longtime friend, the charming and lethal Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer). As tensions rise, a bloody conflict erupts between the Earps and the Cowboys, culminating in the infamous gunfight at the O.K. Corral. What follows is a relentless quest for justice and vengeance that tests loyalty, courage and honor.
Blending historical drama with gritty Western shoot-em-up action, TOMBSTONE remains director George Cosmatos’ magnum opus of its genre.
“Nothing about George P. Cosmatos’ 1993 Western is subtle. It’s not a revisionist Western or an anti-Western, nor is it a deconstruction of a legendary lawman. It’s a movie rich in the mythmaking of the American West, as evidenced by its opening sequence, which begins with silent film-era framing and then explodes into a sequence so vivid and so bold that you can imagine it as a Technicolor, VistaVision presentation from the 1950s.” —Matthew Jackson, The A.V. Club “Perhaps the most compelling character performance of the film is Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday…. Kilmer's performance [has] gone on to be one of most commonly quoted of the western genre, but also to be regarded as one of, if not the most compelling elements of the film. Kilmer absolutely nails the lovable but deadly nature of the character, and it sticks with the viewer long after the story and other major characters fade from memory.” —Scott Lowe, IGN
