Tombstone Rashomon – Film Review

Disclaimer: I received this film for free from TriCoast Entertainment in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the film or the content of my review.

Title: Tombstone Rashomon

Age: 15

Released: 7th July 2020 (available on VOD platforms and Amazon)

Director: Alex Cox

Genre: Western

Rating:   ⭐⭐⭐ (3/5 Stars)

About: History is seen from the perspectives of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, Ike Clanton, Colonel Hafford and Johnny Behan

Review: So I’m not usually one to go for Westerns, but this was a lot better than I thought it was going to be.

For anyone who isn’t familiar with story, then the gunfight that this film is about is one of the most famous shootouts in the American Wild West History.

So who wouldn’t want to go back in time and see it in motion?

This gunfight at the OK Corral is something that only happened once, but is something that has been tirelessly recreated in films, television shows and western towns ever since.

So what makes this film any different?

Well from what I’ve gathered (bearing in mind I have little knowledge on this subject), no one seems to know the truth about what happened during this gunfight – something which is shown when the truth is revealed the day after, by six conflicting viewpoints.

This is something which I liked about the film. Rather than try to fabricate the truth, the film has a time machine that sends them back in time – but to the day after the event.

The time machine idea was pretty cool, but it was annoying that we don’t find out how they time traveled, but I guess that’s not really important to the story.

I liked that the film’s narrative was done with six different view points though, it made it feel like a really thorough telling of one of the most important gunfights in American history.

This is the Tombstone story told in the style of the Japanese classic Rashomon where we see history from several perspectives including that of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, Kate, Ike Clanton, Colonel Hafford and Johnny Behan.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised. I wouldn’t say it was my favourite film, but it fully embraces the Rashomon style, which makes it stand out on its own.

I enjoyed the frame story aspect – a story within a story. If you are going into this film, expecting it to be along the lines of or are going to compare it to the 1993 Tombstone version, you will be disappointed.

Watch the movie as it is, a satire-ish and unique telling of this gunfight, and you will have some laughs.