Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story (2016) User Reviews

B-western

[SnoopyStyle · 5/10 · 28 May 2020]

Masked men led by Nathaniel Reed (Trace Adkins) rob a stagecoach driven by Calhoun (Kim Coates). Some years later, Nathaniel is three months behind on his mortgage. His wife Laura Lee Reed (Michelle Harrison) is sick. Former running mate Frank Bell arrives with news of another former mate being killed after tortured for information. Despite the warning, Nathaniel refuses to run. Calhoun is now a Marshall and arrives with Bonnie Mudd looking to capture him alive. In the gunfight, Calhoun kills Laura Lee. Nathaniel goes back to robbing with Frank and another mate Sid (Judd Nelson).

My first complaint may seem petty but it is important. I don't like some of the gunshot sounds especially inside the house. They sound soft almost like a cap gun. They need more power. The second annoying thing is the need to make Nathaniel the hero of the story. He insists on not hurting people during the robberies. It's such a weak and obvious move. He's almost a gentleman in the way that he's written. While Trace Adkins has functional acting skills, it is nowhere deep enough to be an emotional performance. All in all, this is not exciting. It is not insightful. It is not that interesting other than getting me to skim through Nathaniel Reed's wiki page.

Trace Adkins is a kick-axx Westerner, but this low-budget Western is substandard

[Wuchakk · 4/10 · 14 June 2018]

RELEASED IN 2016 and directed by Terry Miles, "Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story" stars Trace Adkins as a former stagecoach robber who turns over a new leaf and marries, but feels forced to turn back to outlawry when a one-eyed marshal tries to apprehend him (Judd Nelson). Kim Coates and Claude Duhamel are on hand as his gang members.

Adkins makes for an iconic Westerner, as witnessed in "Traded" (2016) and "Hickok" (2017). The difference between "Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story" and those two is (1.) Adkins plays the main protagonist and (2.) it's noticeably inferior in overall filmmaking, even though it cost approximately the same amount to make. In other words, as low-budget as "Traded" and "Hickok" were, they worked quite well as made-for-TV (or direct-to-video) Westerns, all things considered. "Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story" is almost amateurish by comparison.

Nevertheless, it has some points of interest for those who don't mind slipshod productions: Adkins is a likable protagonist; the one-eyed marshal was the dope-smoking rebel in "The Breakfast Club" (1985); Michelle Harrison is stunning as the protagonist's redheaded wife, Laura Lee; Helena Marie plays Bonnie, a striking tall blonde deputy with a penchant for killing; the British Columbia locations are effective; and there's a quality moral about not trusting people of dubious character, particularly LIARS.

THE FILM RUNS 1 hour, 30 minutes and was shot in British Columbia (Mission and Maple Ridge). WRITERS: Dan Benamor and Matt Williams.

GRADE: C/C-

How about Applejack

[nogodnomasters · 4/10 · 3 September 2017]

Nathanial Reed (Trace Adkins) is a gentleman stagecoach robber. In the first scene he puts out the eye of Calhoun (Kim Coates) a US Marshal. The story picks up three year later with Reed being married and civilized and Calhoun out to kill Reed. Circumstances turns Reed back to robbing stagecoaches with his old gang Now there was a historical Nathanial Reed, aka Texas Jack who robbed stagecoaches. The story in this film looks nothing like his history found on-line. Sid (Judd Nelson) may be the only one that was historical besides the Dalton. The story and acting was wooden. The story line was predictable, probably because most of it wasn't true. This must be the Saturday morning version.

Guide: No swearing, sex, or nudity.

I gave up after 10 minutes

[jostannie · 1/10 · 12 November 2016]

Well as there were no reviews I started to watch this film as I like the genre. I'm generally very tolerant reviewing movies and was prepared to give it a chance. However after 10 minutes I could give no more!

The acting is pretty naff and the shooting scenes (at least those I saw) were pretty poorly done. I usually sit through really crap movies just to see if they get better, but there was no way this looked like it was going to improve.

It looks more like a cheap TV movie. Give it a go if you must but 10 minutes was all I could watch.

Made it 23 minutes

[doumite-12613 · 1/10 · 14 April 2017]

Alright, I love western movies and when I saw who the stagecoach driver was I was pretty optimistic (Kim Coates). However, the writing was poor and the acting lacked realism. I only made it 23 minutes which is after the first major shootout in the movie. Trace Adkins character takes a bullet in the shoulder and he proceeds to stand there and do nothing...they escape the house without anyone following even though they claimed there were 6 deputies outside (you never see them) and then that night Trace pulls the bullet out of his shoulder in about 3 seconds with a knife blade (which comes back to view with no blood on it) at this point I was done.

Trace Atkins...

[sfinancing · 1/10 · 29 April 2017]

...should stick to music.

Saw a few good reviews for this one and assume that they were either part of the cast or watching a different movie.

Lame story. Bad acting. Apparently couldn't even be bothered to come up with new names for the characters. Not engaging, not amusing, not up to the standards of your cheesiest spaghetti western. Fan of B movies and this doesn't even hit that standard. Kept waiting for some redeeming feature...nothing showed.

Way too many minutes of my life gone forever.

Moss on *evergreens* in a forest in Texas?!

[jdocop-35513 · 2/10 · 29 March 2019]

Nothing more offputting than to live in Texas and then be shown a movie purported to be set in Texas, but to see things that do not exist in Texas! We do not have mountains! No moss, especially on roofs and buildings. Constant rain, with mist? Matched horses pulling a stagecoach? Through a beautiful, green meadow? Not on a anything like a road? Please. Yes, the acting is pretty bad. the story jumps all over the place, and ultimately, he went from too bad, to too good, to too bad again? Cannot recommend this cheap movie to anyone.

Don't waste your time

[bwells-60372 · 1/10 · 19 November 2018]

This movie was horrible. Bad script, bad acting, even the gun fights were horrible. Just bad, bad bad bad bad! Not even of B movie quality. The few people you will recognize have always played side character, and this movie will show why the should stay there. This was one of the worst movies I have seen in a long time.

"Oh my, this is apple pie!"

[classicsoncall · 6/10 · 28 May 2017]

It must be an unwritten rule somewhere that popular singers must at least once during their career appear in a movie Western. Such disparate personalities as Bobby Darin ("Gunfight in Abilene"), Mick Jagger ("Ned Kelly"), and even David Bowie ("Il Mio West") all appeared in one, mostly with mixed results. With country singers, appearing in a Western seems made to order, as folks like Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson appeared in a fair share of their own.

So I guess it turned out to be Trace Adkins' turn in "Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story". Quite honestly, he probably should stick with his forte because this flick left much to be desired. It's got the basics down OK, but the delivery is pretty flat and the flashback stuck into the middle of the story disrupts some of the continuity. While watching, I never for a minute believed that Laura Lee (Michelle Harrison) was dead during the shootout at the Reed ranch, even if Frank Bell (Claude Duhamel) had sworn up and down on a stack of Bibles. The whole idea just wasn't presented with a modicum of credibility.

Even the way Texas Jack got his name came across as a dubious proposition. It came about when Nate Reed (Adkins), Frank Bell, and Sid Dalton (Judd Nelson) got wasted on a couple quarts of Apple Jack, and in their drunken daze they came up with the connection between Nate's home state and their choice of rotgut. I guess it could have been worse, they could have been drinking brandy.

And then there was the final showdown. I liked the way Nate/Texas Jack shot the rope that Marshal Calhoun (Kim Coates) rigged to hang Sid Dalton, but then, instead of the two gunmen facing off against each other, it's the banker (John Emmett Tracy) who foreclosed on the Reed farm who came forward to make the save by shooting Calhoun. It almost seemed like a let down since it was Texas Jack's story, not the Ballad of Hank Holliday.

Wanted to like it, but..

[jscottmoss · 2/10 · 24 November 2018]

I love westerns and It seems good westerns are a thing of the past. Therefore, I was truly hoping this would be, at least, a decent movie. Instantly, I was disappointed that the acting is below average. Still wishing to like it I watched further and found the story to be predictable. I'll keep searching.

One of the better westerns lately and one that I liked a lot more than I expected to

[cosmo_tiger · 8/10 · 12 December 2016]

"There's a man coming from and he aims to bury you." Nathaniel Reed (Adkins) lived the life of a stagecoach robber and was successful. After taking down a large score him and his band decide to go their separate ways and live straight. Years later his past comes back to haunt him, and Calhoun (Coates) a former victim turned US Marshall is bent on revenge. In recent years most westerns have been what I call the $5 Westerns, meaning that the movies seem to be made on a budget of $5. This one had higher quality, not a ton, but enough. The thing this really had going for it though was that it was good. Surprisingly good. The movie isn't all that original or amazing, but compared to the recent crop of B-westerns this is easily one of the best. The acting is what you would expect but the story is actually well developed and interesting enough for you to stay interested in. The one down fall of this movie was the time jumping. The movie went from past to future to past to present and it was overly confusing. Some of the events didn't seem to line up, but other than that this is defiantly worth watching. Overall, one of the better westerns lately and one that I liked a lot more than I expected to. I surprisingly give this a high B.

Another Above-Average Terry Miles Western

[zardoz-13 · 7/10 · 15 December 2016]

"Dawn Rider" director Terry Miles has helmed another atmospheric, above-average western "Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story," with county music singer Trace Atkins. Ostensibly based on the life of a real-life outlaw, this 91-minute oater chronicles the life of a stagecoach robber who doesn't shoot anybody during the commission of his crimes. Nevertheless, a hopelessly vile one-eyed lawman, Calhoun (Kim Coates of "Waterworld") rides in hot pursuit of him. Eventually, Calhoun corners Nathaniel Reed (Trace Atkins of "The Virginian") who has settled down with a wife, Laura Lee Reed (Michele Harrison of "Paycheck"), who is pregnant with their son. Actually, Reed is several payments behind on his mortgage. Later in the day, an old accomplice in crime, Frank Bell (Claude Duhamel of "Western Religion") shows up unexpectedly and warns him about Calhoun. A gunfight erupts, but our hero and his old partner escape. Bell tells Reed that Laura Lee shot Calhoun and then she died of a gunshot wound. Reluctantly, Reed resorts to business as usual as a stagecoach outlaw, but he warns Bell to refrain from killing anybody. Bell ignores Reed and keeps on shooting people. Meantime, Calhoun is back on Reed's trail after he catches up with a disgruntled Bell who sells his old partner out. At the same time, Reed and another accomplice Sid (Judd Nelson of "The Breakfast Club") go ahead and rob stagecoaches without shooting anybody. Calhoun confronts Bell in a saloon during a poker game. When the other gambler objects to Calhoun interrupting their game, Calhoun's sadistic, trigger-happy gunslinging partner, Bonnie Mudd (Helena Marie of "Crazy Love"), guns the man down in cold blood. About this time, Calhoun and Bonnie come after Nathaniel and Sid, and Nathaniel takes a bullet in the side, and Sid packs him off on his own horse. Sid stays behind to slow up Calhoun and company. In a reversal of events, another lawman rides into the Matt Williams and Dan Benamor screenplay with a warrant for Calhoun's arrest. He explains that Calhoun has exceeded his authority as a lawman and is killing people without proper authority. Like "The Dawn Rider," Miles stages this sprawling, out-of-doors western in mountainous British Columbia, and the scenery looks pretty rugged. Atkins makes a believable as well as sympathetic outlaw, and Helena Marie steals the movie as a pistol-packing babe who displays no compunctions about killing men in cold blood. Mind you, Kim Coates is brilliant as the sleazy, unsavory lawman. Judd Nelson makes a strong impression as Atkins' sidekick. This western packs a surprise or two and it is an interesting horse opera with genuine looking firearms.

Awful Movie

[amareen-59451 · 1/10 · 29 July 2017]

With all due respect, this movie is not worthy of the time you spend watching it. Trace Adkins tried to look sophisticated but I believe he came to the wrong territory; acting is not his business. The movie doesn't move anything inside the viewer and it's empty of real entertainment or solid story line. I really don't know they expect to make success with this run-of-the-mill picture.

Read the spoilers; spend the remaining 88 minutes of your life doing something else.

[guyzradio · 3/10 · 22 June 2018]

This is a unique film in that acting ability is inversely proportional to where the actor is ranked in the cast. Trace Adkins' bio is extremely heavy on his singing career, which ought to tell you his strengths do not lie in his acting ability. His performance as Nate Reed is consistently flat, one dimensional, and loud -- seems the sound mixer cranked up the mic volume for each of his lines. The unhinged marshal's female sidekick (a fetching blond) is equally one dimensional, but just plain evil; the mix of her looks and personal qualities strains the imagination. Story-wise, you can almost predict the next scene based on where you are...almost. We have a few of the "Three weeks before," "One week later," etc. helper screens that serve no purpose other than confuse you. However, about 10 years pass between when "the boys" have a shootout with the marshal and his mate, and Nate Reed is reunited with his wife long thought to have been killed in the battle. They now have a son about 10 years old (she was pregnant at the time of the shoot-out), yet nobody else has aged, and the wife looks better than ever. Perhaps most puzzling is the last few minutes of the movie, when the final showdown occurs and the bad vanquish the even badder. The good marshals show up to apprehend the bad marshal & company, and the scene cuts to Nate Reed leaving church with the family, he and his remaining stage-robber buddy now full-fledged law men. Crops are saved, nobody remembers, and all is forgiven. The more I think about it, the few stars I can give.

Trace Adkins looks like a stagecoach robber but his acting is totally uninspired.

[TxMike · 11 July 2017]

I came across this movie on Netflix streaming. As I have come to realize more and more Netflix adds mostly very mediocre movies, the ones that never did well in the theater, if they were ever even in the theater.

Trace Adkins is Nathaniel Reed, living in the hills of Texas and trying to go straight after quitting the stagecoach robbing business. He has a nice farm and a pretty wife and by all appearances he just wants to be left alone.

But as Valjean had his Javert, Nate has a lawman who won't leave him alone.

This is not a very good movie. Lovers of the genre may well find it worthwhile but I didn't. The story has possibilities but really, Trace Adkins is an expressionless actor with no dynamic. He just is unable to carry a movie in a feature role.

And I never did find out who "Texas Jack" is.

It hurt a little.

[earlyritter · 3/10 · 18 April 2017]

I have to admit I was not glued to the screen for this one. It looked like it might be good. But it just felt flat and sterile. Kind of like a diet soda. It's all there but something tells you its not the real thing. The story was OK, pretty typical. visually it is again passing. The acting is flat and the characters are hard to care about. It does try to be clever and have cool memorable lines but it comes of forced. Things like the firearms having no visible recoil is annoying. Maybe that is nitpicky but this is a moving about gun fighting. It makes the weapons seem impotent/harmless. If you have ever fired a single action .45 i'm sure you'll agree with my observation. "I want you to see this live!" compared to what? I'm pretty sure everything people saw back then was "live". Anyway, I guess I can't say don't watch it. Give it a try. It just did not work for me. Good modern westerns = Tombstone, Unforgiven, even Wyatt Erp, etc. This is far far away from those.

Oh My Lord

[Naturalragman · 1/10 · 12 July 2017]

What a pile of crap! Poor acting, poor script and a "movie" with Texas in the title shot in Canada. Hep me Jebus! What a pile of crap! Poor acting, poor script and a "movie" with Texas in the title shot in Canada. Hep me Jebus! What a pile of crap! Poor acting, poor script and a "movie" with Texas in the title shot in Canada. Hep me Jebus!

Bad sound effects

[markrhodes-87544 · 5/10 · 12 May 2017]

I thought the story line and acting was OK, my only real complaint is the guns when fired sound like cap guns, six shooters are lot louder. So if you don't mind six shooters not being loud, good short movie to watch, at least it's not made in a desert, I like seeing trees in a western.

Worse than bad

[richbaker5150 · 1/10 · 17 October 2019]

This movie is dreadfully awful. Trace can't act to save his own skin. So many improbables and I quit at the 20 minute mark. Who knows what else kind of BS happens but I'll thankfully never know. Save yourself. Watch anything else. Skip it.

Bad Bad Acting

[batemanfamilyfarm · 3/10 · 2 June 2017]

Save 1 1/2 hrs of your time and don't bother. We gave it more time than the other review in hopes that it would improve. Unfortunately, it didn't. Trace Adkins' acting was comparable to the other characters but the story line did not have the depth necessary for it to be a good western. We like good westerns but this definitely failed to deliver.

Western entertainment at its simplistic best.

[Tony-Gavin-Micro-Movie-Studios · 8/10 · 14 July 2020]

Kim Coates steals the show in my opinion with his Good guy turned bad guy character. The former bad guys turn good and somehow you end up on their side and cheering them on. 90 minutes of action and excitement.

Smacks a little of a director trying to carve out some tax break for themselves. Although from the budget I guess that's perhaps not the case

[anthonymd91 · 2/10 · 28 June 2023]

Disappointing in almost every single way.

Where to start...the dialogue felt like the characters had just stumbled off some sit-com set, and were discussing what's for dinner or the latest on who's dating who. I can't think of a single character who delivered their lines with any grit, as we have come to expect in the Western genre. Some realistic acting limited to the facial expressions, at least - occasionally.

Some of the gunfights are almost comical, childish. Two enemies leaning around corners and shooting at nothing much, while their opponent is out of sight. Which is partly interrupted by some dialogue. Don't think I've seen guns fired on screen anytime, ever, where there was absolutely no tension. It is farcical at times.

The music feels like something from a video game. No variation, the dynamics are almost distracting from what is happening on-screen as they do not seem to match. Occasionally the music cuts out before resuming again 'for effect' I guess that was supposed to be. Interesting that the score is performed, recorded and mixed by just one man. Midi I am guessing then (that would make total sense, in hindsight).

I'm repeating what other reviewers have said, that it just feels like it is going through the motions. We are never captivated by the characters.

In its defence, the setting and the props (carriages, not so much the guns) seem fairly true to the genre. It gets 2 rather than 1 star for evoking something of the wilderness of the Western setting effectively.