Maverick (1994)

“Lord… whatever I’ve done to piss you off… if you could just get me out of this and somehow let me know what it was, I promise to rectify the situation.”

Thus starts this adventure of one Brett Maverick, an adventurer and cardsharp who is desperate to make it to a championship poker game in Saint Louis. In order to get there, he needs to collect the $3,000 owed to him to pay the $25,000 entry fee. But things get complicated when he has to deal with bank robbers, wild Indians, a rogue gang of thugs, and a runaway horse carriage in order to play in that poker tournament. And did I mention a professional thief posing as a Southern belle?

Western comedy doesn’t get any better than this movie, which is a remake of the classic Western TV show. It is directed by Richard Donner, who did all three Lethal Weapon movies, and the humor is much the same here. It features an all-star cast that includes Mel Gibson as Maverick, Jodie Foster as Mrs. Annabelle Bransford, and James Garner (who played Maverick in the original series) as Marshal Zane Cooper. The repartee between Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster is smart and full of laugh-out-loud humor.

There is also a long list of supporting actors that add a great deal of humor to this movie. Danny Glover of Lethal Weapon fame makes a cameo appearance as a bank robber who gets a serious case of déjà vu when he thinks he recognizes Mel Gibson from somewhere. Graham Greene as Joseph the Indian and Geoffrey Lewis as the banker are two “friends” of Maverick who add much to the humor of the movie. Then there is James Garner, of course, who has fun nagging Gibson throughout the movie until the surprise ending.

I really enjoyed watching the poker tournament that comes at the end of the movie. It takes place on a steamship located on the Mississippi River owned by a Commodore Duvall, played by veteran actor James Coburn. There are several famous Western actors that help give this scene the right feel, including Bert Remsen and Denver Pyle. The country western music that plays in the background is perfect for the scene and fun to hear (even though I dislike such music in principle). There is a plot against Maverick that comes to a head here at the tournament, but I think that the game itself, and watching Maverick win, is more fun (and worth watching over again) than the suspense and action scenes.

This movie is highly recommended for anyone who wants a good laugh.

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