In a way, it's a relief that Clint Eastwood is back home again.

The plot proves to be more complex than Clint merely blowing away varmints one by one.

Any movie that opens with cows puts a smile on my face. Then you have Clint Eastwood saving a calf that can’t quite swim herself across a river. I’m smiling widely.

Ted Post's direction is especially adroit at keeping the baroque flurries bubbling under the deceptive surface of old-pro craftsmanship