Incannerax What a waste of my time!!!

SpecialsTarget Disturbing yet enthralling

TeenzTen An action-packed slog

Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Anssi Vartiainen A film that works both as a light-hearted western and as an plot-oriented comedy. As a whole I can say that it's a winning combination. The film never forgets what it is and never tries to pretend that it's something else. It opens on an upbeat note and continues on that note till the very end. Personally, I find that refreshing.The film leans rather heavily on its cast's ability to pull off good comedy, but luckily it got some of the bigger names that are able to do just that. Mel Gibson does a surprisingly good job as the eponymous Bret Maverick. He can be tough and convincing when he needs to be, but he can also do light-hearted comedy. He also has good chemistry with Jodie Foster's Annabelle, who's the other main character in this little romp. Her character doesn't quite hit the right notes all the time, mainly because she's one of those characters you're never quite what she's going to do next, which often makes them annoyingly unpredictable, but she's better than most her kind. James Garner does a great role as Marshal Zane Cooper, as does James Coburn as Commodore Duvall. Both are old western legends, and it's nice to see this movie giving them a respectful nod like that.I unfortunately cannot say that the antagonists of this film were quite as good. Alfred Molina's Angel especially was a bit too... obvious, I think might be the right word. Obviousness might work in a comedy such as this, but I just found him annoying and not all that believable. Still, he and his kind do their jobs and their not offensively bad, so they don't ruin the film.Aside from that the film has a good sense of humour. Most of the jokes stem from the characters and the story, and not from pop culture or lowbrow jokebooks, which is always a good thing. Furthermore, the film looks and sounds great, the action is suitably over the top and the story isn't half bad. I'd definitely give this one a watch if you're looking for a fun action-comedy.

Neil Welch Let me say at the outset that Maverick is a hugely enjoyable humorous western. Coming right in the thick of Hollywood mining TV nostalgia in order to put big screen adaptations of popular TV series from yesteryear on screen, it is both a decent homage to its progenitor as well as being a very entertaining movie in its own right. It has a good, unpredictable story, an excellent cast who all perform well (especially the supporting characters), Mel Gibson makes an attractive Bret Maverick, and it is pleasing to see James Garner, TV's Bret Maverick, as Marshal Zane Cooper - such films like to place members of the original cast as a nod of approval, a way of linking the old to the new.And then the makers of this film play a trick on the audience (by which I mean those members who recall the original and are watching this film for the first time). I can't say anything about it other than that it involves confounding expectations, but it is a sheer delight when it dawns on the audience how thoroughly they have been had.I'm not a major Mel Gibson fan, but I do like this movie a lot.

Spikeopath Maverick is directed by Richard Donner and written by William Goldman. It stars Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster and James Garner, with support coming from Alfred Molina, Graham Greene and James Coburn. The music is scored by Randy Newman and Vilmos Zsigmond is on photography. It's based on the 1950s television series of the same name and the plot finds Gibson as Maverick and follows his attempt to take his place in a major five-card draw poker tournament. With Foster and Garner in tow, there's plenty of adventures and misadventures along the way. After Costner's Dances With Wolves and Eastwood's Unforgiven had reignited interest in the Western genre in the 90s, Richard Donner and his team felt the time was right to unleash a light hearted Western on the mainstream audience. Timing was important, as was the casting, but Maverick is the sort of family friendly fun that could in truth be released at any time in any decade and still be a hit at the box office. It's not particularly clever in narrative or themes, but with its blending of action, romance and comedy seamlessly coming together as a whole, Maverick is practically hard to dislike. Even the cast seem to be having a real good time, with Gibson smooth and roguish, Foster dainty yet spunky and Garner (the original Maverick from the TV show) offering up a sort of stoic maturity over proceedings; with all three playing the comedy with ease (how great it is to see Foster in such a role). Donner and Goldman have also shown respect to both the TV show and the Western in general (check out those lovely landscapes), while it's always fun to play spot the numerous stars in the cameos. Harmless fluff, then, but always watchable and never once over reaching itself by trying to be something it's not. 7.5/10

Samiam3 There is a reason why Mel Gibson has appropriately earned the name 'Mad Mel'. It's not only because of his antisemitism, but rather the majority of characters he portrays are angry bastards; hence you have films like Lethal Weapon, Random, Payback, The Patriot, an decently Edge of Darkness. As it happens there is also a lighter side to the guy. In Maverick, Mel is not playing Mel, he is playing Maverick. Getting absorbed into the role, and having fun with his fellow cast of memorable names including Jodie Foster, James Garner, and James Coburn, he allows us the viewers to have fun. When it's funny, it's funny and when it's exciting it's exciting. Unfortunately when it's lame it's lame. Good thing then that it is almost never so, only in the final fifteen minutes which are an exercise in utter contrivance and coincidence, which is sort of aggravating. In the end it doesn't ruin a fun western experience. Comedic westerns are few and far between, from the classic Blazing Saddles, to this year's Gunless. Maverick is another worth seeing.