TV REVIEW : L’Amour Western: Labor of Love

In many ways, “Conagher” (premiering tonight on TNT at 5 and 8) is the most authentic adaptation of a Western by the late Louis L’Amour ever put on the screen. That means L’Amour’s fans and those who would like an introduction to one of literature’s best-selling authors are in for a treat.

Ideally, this two-hour movie should be seen without its ton of commercials, because the production seamlessly weaves together the disparate stories of two mythic figures--a lonely widow (Katharine Ross) tilling a desolate patch of land, and a tough, taciturn, sensitive cowhand (Sam Elliott).

In fact, somewhat like “Dances With Wolves” was for Kevin Costner, this production is a labor of love for Elliott. He knew L’Amour, makes his debut as an executive producer and wrote the script with Jeffrey M. Meyer and actress Ross (who is Elliott’s real-life wife). And as the entitled gunman-protector, Elliott’s short hair and long mustache provide lingering images.

What’s riveting are the dirt and dust and smoke, the slap of credulity in the musty lighting, the heroine’s loneliness, the deliberate gearing down of the action, the distinctive fiddle and cello country score by J.A.C. Redford. Maniacal violence is out. This is still an adventure and a romance, but, blessedly, it’s pure L’Amour (a rare L’Amour venture, too, into a strong female character).

L’Amour’s daughter, Angelique, has a brief role as a stagecoach visitor. While the film is dedicated to the memory of L’Amour, who died in 1988, it also turns out to be a salute to another indelible Western figure, actor Ken Curtis (Festus Haggen in “Gunsmoke”), who, in his last role, plays a gnarly old cattle rancher. Curtis died two months ago today.