RELEASED TO TV IN 1999 and directed by Uli Edel, "Purgatory" chronicles events circa 1888 when a gang of outlaws led by Blackjack Britton (Eric Roberts) holds up in a mysterious hidden town called Refuge where the inhabitants seem overly gracious and pacifistic. Respectful greenhorn Sonny (Brad Rowe) increasingly suspects something strange is happening. Sam Shepard plays the Sheriff, Donnie Wahlberg his deputy, Randy Quaid the doctor and JD Souther a shop-owner. Amelia Heinle and Shannon Kenny are on hand in the feminine department.Other than the action-packed opening, this is a town-bound Western. While you can pick-up the made-for-TV quality right away, the movie scores well in its intriguing premise and quality writing. There are fantastical elements akin to "Pale Rider" (1985) and "High Plains Drifter" (1973). The movie's pretty much on par with the former and superior to the latter IMHO due to the more engaging story and weighty subtext.THE FILM RUNS 1 hour, 34 minutes and was shot in Barstow and Burbank Studios, California. WRITER: Gordon T. Dawson.GRADE: BADDITIONAL COMMENTARY ***SPOILER ALERT*** (Don't read unless you've watched the movie).Some viewers misunderstood the premise of the movie. The town of Refuge isn't just for outlaws; it's the "last chance" for the "marginally good," as phrased in the movie; it evens says something like the inhabitants were plucked from the incorrigibly wicked. As such, the citizens (not visitors) have different identities and occupations than in their former lives. For instance, Billy the Kid is now Deputy Glen, not a gunfighter; and Dolly Sloan is now Ivy, not a prostitute or suffragette. Holliday was now Doc Woods, an M.D. and not a dentist, who wasn't skinny because he no longer has tuberculosis.Just the same, Jesses James was now a shop owner named Brooks and was no longer robbing trains. Some contend that James deserved immediate damnation because he was a notorious bank/train robber, but the movie implies that he was corrupted by the Civil War during his developing years which involved the bloody guerrilla warfare in Missouri/Kansas and therefore he is given a "last chance" in Refuge .As for the dubious chronology, Holliday might have been a relatively recent arrival and therefore the reference to "10 years" in regards to Hickok's death actually meant "about 10 years." So the events could be taking place in 1888 or even 1889.The movie suggests that Sonny was read-up on famous Western figures and so recognized clues to their real identities. He only suspected who they really were. And this was eventually verified as he increasingly discovers the supernatural nature of Refuge. In other words, it wasn't like he instantly recognized these individuals and was 100% sure of their semi-infamous identities based on dime-store novels.Lastly, some complain that the movie supports the questionable idea that shooting people makes you a candidate for eternal life. Actually, it advocates selfless bravery and commitment to justice: Blackjack & his gang proved that they were chronic thugs and a serious threat to others; taking a violent-if-necessary stand against them was the only answer since they were incurable. The best way to stop a bad person with a gun is via a good person with a gun.

The title of this offbeat TV Western unfortunately tends to give away the plot twist, but don't let it stop you from enjoying the many familiar faces playing equal numbers of some very weary and some very venal cowpokes. Eric Roberts leads a troop of bank robbers who stumble across a "lost" town in the desert. Sam Shepherd is the town marshal aided by deputy Donnie Wahlberg and town doctor Randy Quaid. No one in town carries a gun, there is no jail and everyone spends an awful lot of time in church, which leads Roberts to believe the community should be easy pickings. He will be proved wrong, very wrong. You've seen this story done before, both as STAR TREK and TWILIGHT ZONE episodes. But don't let it stop you from enjoying this Wild West fantasy, as you try to guess the true identities of Shepherd and his apparently pacifist pals. I gave this occasionally clumsy mystery thriller and extra point for trying something different.

I love a good western, and this would have to be one of the best I have ever seen. What a beautiful storyline, what a great place Refuge was. I hope that it truly is like that when we pass away. I don't know what those people did (good) that let them go to refuge, rather than straight to Hell, because all of the Blackjack gang (about 30) went straight to Hell, rather than purgatory. I don't know why Jesse James, Wild Bill and Doc didn't go straight to Hell for their sins, but where given a second chance, unlike the Blackjack gang. I actually got this movie without reading the back cover, so I didn't know what to expect. I was so surprised with this movie. I will watch it many times

This outstanding fantasy is dressed up as western. A tough bunch of outlaws ride into a town named Purgatory, an idyllic garden spot in the middle of the desert, not realizing that Purgatory is not of earth and not knowing the lawmen they face are the greatest gunmen who ever lived trying to save their souls from hell by living according to the standards of Purgatory.The citizens of Purgatory are being given a second chance now that they know there is life after death. They must rein in their personal lusts and weaknesses and live the sober, peaceful, and considerate ways of Purgatory or the undertaker will deliver them to the fiery canyon outside the town. Now the townsmen must deal with the uncouth, unbridled hombres who are intent on ruining the town, raping the women, and doing whatever they please. Can they do it without resorting to violence that put them in Purgatory?