There’s not too much about Quigley Down Under to set it apart from the dozens of generic westerns produced since the genre’s heyday. It may transplant the typical gun-for-hire story to Australia and take advantage of the sweeping landscapes down under, but when push comes to shove, Quigley offers nothing new in the story it tells. Westerns have a few common stories that get used over and over again, and a gunslinger hired to do a deed only to discover the employer has nefarious intentions is one such example. You can put as many twists on the story as you’d like, but the fact is genres repeat themselves (and not just westerns), and Quigley Down Under amounts to just a well-filmed blip on the radar. A blip with a damned fine mustache, that is.
Called down under for his reputation as one of the American West’s most revered sharpshooter, Quigley (Tom Selleck) finds confusion waiting at every turn when he arrives in Australia. His welcoming committee assaults him, a woman (Laura San Giacomo) seems to think he’s her lost love named Roy, and his would-be employer Elliott Marston (Alan Rickman) has been a bit unclear about what he really wants Quigley to do. It seems that the contract to kill a few wild dogs translates to eliminating aboriginals that have been causing him a bit of trouble. Being a man of honor, Quigley refuses and begins a one-man-war against Marston, his ranch, and his band of mercenaries.
Quigley Down Under borrows its pieces from both the Westerns of old as well as the era of its conception, effectively altering the traditions that built the genre up with new ones that still hold true to its spirit but update the image of quintessential American manhood to one contemporary audiences will recognize as reflective of their own times. It might not be groundbreaking in how it tells a story, but it’s the perfect bridge to connect the past with the present.
Blu-ray Bonus Features
A featurette discussing how Quigley Down Under reinvents the Western walks through some of the film’s noticeable updates of the genre.
"Quigley Down Under" is on sale November 1, 2011 and is rated PG13. Adventure. Directed by Simon Wincer. Written by John Hill. Starring Alan Rickman, Tom Selleck, Laura San Giacomo.
