AMC’s Saturday night Western, The Son, is based on the novel by Philipp Meyer. The novel was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, but ironically, it is the writing that is the downfall of the television series.
The characters are woefully underwritten. They lack motivation and depth, despite the fact that there’s plenty of room for it. The plot’s as wide open as the south Texas sky, so it could use a little overlap and complexity to hold the audience’s interest.
For all of these reasons, The Son is about as addictive as latrine duty.
What keeps the show afloat is the crackerjack acting, spearheaded by Pierce Brosnan as Eli McCullough. Brosnan brings all the swagger you can handle to this tough guy role. The supporting cast is equally as impressive, especially Henry Garrett as Pete and Sydney Lucas as Jeannie.
The Son toggles between two storylines, both centered around Eli McCullough.
In 1849, we follow young Eli’s (Jacob Lofland) dramatic coming of age. Eli’s family is attacked and killed by a Comanche tribe, and Eli and his brother (the only survivors) are taken hostage. While Eli tries to lay low, his brother bravely revolts against the tribe members, leading to his murder in front of Eli. The tribe continues on for days, and finally settles in a camp miles from any white man, making Eli’s escape futile.
Chief Toshaway (Zahn McClarnon) takes a shining to Eli, giving him sage advice over peace pipe smoke sessions. Following his lead, the tribe members take Eli under their wing, and teach him their ways. But why would they give their trade secrets to some white boy? What’s the advantage? At the same time, Eli has been given a couple of opportunities to escape, but he always chooses to stay with the tribe. Why?
Because it’s obvious that Eli survives this time with the Comanches, the plot loses its luster. Especially when so little holds the two storylines together.
In 1915, Eli (Pierce Brosnan) is now a grandfather and a revered Colonel living in the Rio Grande Valley. Unfortunately, his prized ranch is going to hell in a handbasket. There’s no oil to be found, and it’s not for a lack of trying. Eli continues to fight tooth and nail for this land, but to what end?
There are a few scenes that speak to the complexity of Eli McCullough’s life, but they are few and far between. For example, during an especially frustrating meeting, Eli fantasizes about scalping a man for refusing to invest in his oil scheme. Aside from that scene, we have little evidence that Eli carries anything with him from that part of his life. Except maybe a bad attitude.
Currently, the McCulloughs are fighting the Sediciosos over their land. The McCulloughs have already caught neighbor Cesar Sanchez (Elliot Villar) blowing up their oil rig, and Eli tortured him in the shed for days. Trying to do the right thing, Eli’s son Pete (Henry Garrett) attempted to free Cesar, but he ends up killing him in self defense. In fact, this situation happens to Pete not once, but twice. Talk about bad luck.
Pete constantly struggles with the burden of the lives he’s taken, and everything else that comes part and parcel with his father’s lifestyle. He and his family don’t like ranch livin’, so why are they still there? Why are they fighting so hard for this?
There have been hints in almost every episode that Pete (now married to Sally (Jess Weixler)) and Maria Garcia (Paola Nuñez) have a romantic past, but once again, there are no fantasies or flashbacks to sink our teeth into. Garrett brings as much depth and complexity as he can to this character, but it’s a lost cause.
The Son is a good, old-fashioned Western. No CGI or special effects here, which makes it very character-dependent. Despite the actors’ best efforts, it’s not enough to hold the show together.
Grade: C
Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBwJLfJcOfA