Terror on the Prairie (2022)

Terror on the Prairie (2022)

3/10

 

Starring

Gina Carano

Donald Cerrone

Nick Searcy

Directed by Michael Polish

I got suckered into seeing this movie, I was deceived to believe it was worth my time. I can pinpoint once or twice when the lady, Hattie (Gina Carano) could have ended everything with a bullet, but instead did nothing. This western thriller wasted the grit, gruesome setting it created on a weak story.

There is nothing wrong with the acting of Nick Searcy as Captain Miler in this movie, he seemed to be the only one doing the work of pushing across a fellow easy to dislike. As the antagonist he did all the right things to have me dislike him. Everyone else, well did not live up to their job, they were as I would expect B-movie actors who didn’t see this movie as any reason to bring their A-game.

Casing Carano in this role for me was a big NO. She could not carry the movie as the lead, her acting ability to me failed her in a movie supposed to focus on the after math of the American Civil War. She looked too tough and acted too tough in a situation I am expecting to see a woman holding off a bunch of men scared for her life and that of her children. Her character seemed too confident that she will survive anything.

The story is very simple and boring. Some men led by Miler are hunting down people who did not side with the confederacy. Hattie’s husband is one of such and Miler and his men came to his home to find him. It turns out he is not at home, but his wife is.

Miler warmed his way into the home, but when Hattie realized who he was, she pulled a gun at him and had Miler and his men leave the house.

Gun shooting and a stand-off begins, with the men trying to get into the house to subdue her and she is holding them off.

There were many eye-rolling moments that followed the shootings. There was even a chance to kill off the captain. But she allowed him to talk and walk away. There is no dignity in death, when you get your chance, you take it.

The slow start, weak story and bad directing killed the movie for me. The wonderful setting and costumes needed a great story and a good director. Instead, they allowed the idea of casting a woman as the lead holding off gunmen from getting into her home run crazy in their minds.

They didn’t bother to come up with a good story to follow.