John Cusack Movie:

Editorial Review:
The Jack Bull was produced for and premiered on HBO, but it's easily the most respectable job that feature director John Badham (Saturday Night Fever, WarGames) has done in the past two decades. The title refers not to a piece of livestock but a metaphorical Jack Russell terrier that, once it's annoyed enough to close its jaws on something, will hang on to the point of death.

That would be Myrl Redding (John Cusack), a horse-breeder of limited means but a deeply entrenched sense of justice. His independence galls Henry Ballard (L.Q. Jones), the crusty land baron out to set his brand on most of the countryside. Ballard insults and cheats Redding several times over, and his men beat Redding's horse trainer and friend, an Indian (Rodney A. Grant). When Redding seeks redress from the law, its agents can't be bothered (the local magistrate is in Ballard's pocket). So Redding musters a vigilante army to enforce his own law.

Scratch this handsome but rigorously unromanticized Western--fully an hour passes without a shot being fired--and you find the classic Heinrich von Kleist book Michael Kohlhaas transposed to Wyoming Territory on the eve of statehood. The script--by the star-producer's dad, Dick Cusack--is sturdy and uncompromising, willing to engage the knotty ambiguities of embracing vigilantism even in a just cause. Badham's decision to treat the authorities (Scott Wilson, Jay O. Sanders, John Goodman) as period caricatures is regrettable. But John Cusack is solid as a figure of utterly matter-of-fact integrity. --Richard T. Jameson

The Jack Bull [Region 2] Reviews:
Very Good Film
2008-11-29 - I purchased this film to show my 9th grade US History class. It provides a good summary of life in the 'untamed' West. Also provides a brief summary of Wyoming becoming the 44th state. Finally, it has some lessons about how the legal system has operated (historically).

I love this movie
2008-10-07 - John Cusack was great. My favorite western by far. That was incredible. I watch this all the time. Loved it. Burn 'em!

Review of The Jack Bull DVD
2008-07-27 - The Jack Bull is definately a gripping movie that shares the sentiments of receiving proper justice when wronged. I recommend this to all movie buffs.

The Jack Bull
2008-03-18 - One of John Cusack's best best movies to date. It sheds light on true honor and the man's man way f life. He truly parallels the John wayne persona but with the soft as family man. A movie that you will watch more than five times.

"Somebody steps on your rights, go after him. Never give up... never."
2008-02-13 - The Jack Bull was presented on HBO in April, 1999. Why it never played on the big screen is a mystery to me. It certainly rivals any western to have come out of Hollywood in quite some time although without the graphic violence, sex and profanity. True, there are some scenes laced with profanity but these are few and far between. The violence is under-stated and restrained.

The film's title refers to the Jack Russell breed of terrier which is said to never let go once it latches on. Myrl Redding is like the Jack Russell in his tenacity. It is justice he wants and justice he will have, even if it means the loss of everything he holds dear.

His resolve will be sorely tested as he launches a very personal vendetta against rural Wyoming bully, Henry Ballard, masterfully played by L.Q. Jones.

The Jack Bull's plot is riveting and beautifully acted by the entire cast. Watch for an astonishing performance from Drake Bell. This star is a dead-ringer for a young John Cusack. I would not be surprised if he were a distant relative.

This reviewer was brought to tears during two key scenes in the film (once you watch it, you will know which I mean.) This is a rarity for a western. Interestingly, the screenplay for The Jack Bull was written by none other than Cusack family scion, Dick, who, in fact, had a different star in mind to play Myrl Redding, the horse trader. We can consider ourselves lucky that John won the role. He does his father and the film proud.