It's 1949 San Angelo, Texas, John Grady Cole (Matt Damon) loses the family ranch after his grandfather's death and his mother sold it to live with her new husband in San Antonio. He convinces his friend Lacey Rawlins (Henry Thomas) to go with him to Mexico to find ranch work. They are joined by young Jimmy Blevins (Lucas Black) along the way but are uncertain of his trustworthiness. After some trouble with Mexican locals, the boys split up. John and Lacey get hired onto the large ranch owned by Don Hector de la Rocha (Ruben Blades). John takes an interest in the Don's daughter Alejandra Villarreal (Penélope Cruz).Billy Bob Thornton's directions are luscious melodramatic romantic epic. It's a little long and winding. There are certainly ways to tighten it up but Thornton doesn't seem interested. A tighter edit could raise the intensity. The acting is generally good. This is a romance novel spilled onto the big screen.

I work at a barber shop, and every time this movie has played, not only do I enjoy watching it, but so do all the customers. There is always someone asking for the title of this movie and how is it that they had never heard of it before. The musical score is fantastic and so is the entire scenery. As far as the story itself, nothing goes the way you think it's going to happen, which in my opinion makes it even better! This is definitely a sleeper, one that went under the radar. DO NOT pay attention to what the critics said about this movie. Yes the book was great & no movie ever compares to a great book, but this was a very good effort. I can only imagine how better it would have been if Billy Bob would had have his way.

The storyline sounded like a classic 'western' adventure; it turned out to be just that. Newer, 21st century westerns are expected to showcase the scenery with as much cinematographic style as can be mustered; in this movie, there could have been more resources dedicated to the cinematography, but it is still very beautiful to watch. Matt Damon has made just a few 'western' movies, his first with none other than Robert Duval and Gene Hackman as the co-starring leads (in Geronimo). The only other that comes to mind is 'True Grit (2010)'. Only in '…Pretty Horses' does he have the lead role; that role was a demanding one because he is in almost every scene and he has to ride bucking horses, rodeo style. It hurt just watching him be thrown off the horse (I'll assume some of the rides were done by stunt-men because no guy from Boston could take that kind of abuse). I liked the adventurous story, the beautiful Penélope Cruz and all I can think of to improve the movie would have been to throw in a cameo by Duval or Tommy Lee Jones perhaps.

There are many moments in this film and some that did work at all for me. The great moments include, the thunder storm and the kid who takes off his clothes because he's afraid of lightning, the warning scene where the cowboys realize they're making a terrible decision, but find it necessary anyway, the scene where the Mexican Ranch Owner interrogates Matt Damon. He asks many questions, but in only one question does he suggest, ever so subtly, that he knows more than he is letting on. This is delicate, suggestive film-making. The love affair between Damon and Cruz is also beautifully acted and handled. It is one of Penelope's greater performances.The film also made some glaring mistakes in my opinion. First, there's the violent scenes in prison. It was quite out of the poetical spirit of the rest of the film. It makes the film inappropriate for younger audiences, children under 15, and that is a shame. Secondly, I couldn't understand why the hero returns for the horses. It just confused me that he would risk his life in that way and, to me, made him seem more idiotic than heroic. He does this just after reaffirming his love for Alejandra, which makes the action even more callous and incomprehensible. The lapses are really a shame, because without them, there is a 10 out of 10 movie here that could have been one of the beautiful Westerns ever. I understand that Billy Bob Thornton cut some two hours out of the original cut. Another 20 minutes of cutting and he would have had his masterpiece. I am a bit disappointed that the director's cut hasn't come out yet. If it ever does, I'll be in line for it.