An old western historian decided if the 1993 film tombstone Or the 1994 film Wyatt Erp Has a more historical representation of the famous gunfight at OK Corral. Both films, which were released six months apart, were biographies of lawman Wyatt Earp, his brothers, and his best friend, Doc Holliday, when they took up arms against the McLaury gang. There remains an ongoing discord over which version is better, with a general consensus that Kurt Russell’s is preferable. However, Kevin Costner’s Wyatt Erp May have the edge as far as the gun at OK Corral was depicted.
Historian Mark Lee Gardner sat down for WIREDs Tech Support YouTube series to answer some burning questions about the Old West. Gardner was asked which film was best in the OK Corral scene, to which he answered that Wyatt Earp’s Version was a little more accurate due to the proximity of the gunfighters to each other. He stated that the Costner movie Better represented the estimated 15-foot distance between the two sides. He also noted that both films incorrectly had the gunslingers using holsters. Here’s what he had to say about the films:
I feel like the Wyatt Earp, Kevin Costner version is a little more accurate in that it has the gunfighters much closer together. They are literally within a few feet of each other. The Tombstone movie with Kurt Russell, it’s a very large space, and actually that space where the gun happened, estimates are as little as 15 feet across, so it’s very tight, very compact.
One thing I liked about both films was that they drew from the historical dialogue that was taken down in eyewitness accounts after the OK Corral gunfight. That one famous line where Doc Holliday tells one of the McLauris, he says, “You’re a daisy if you do.” Well, that was actually what he was talking about then.
But the one thing that really stood out to me was that they had the Earps and Doc Holliday pulling guns from holsters. Wyatt Earp pulled his revolver from a coat pocket. Dr. Halliday drew his revolver from a coat pocket. At that time, it was very common for tailors to make pistol pockets in your jackets. It is said that Wyatt Earp’s pocket was actually lined with canvas, in order to make a revolver out of that pocket and not catch the hammer on your coat.
What the determination means to Tombstone & Wyatt Earp
It does not make Wyatt Erp A better film
tombstone was released on December 25, 1993, and starred Russell as Wyatt Earp and Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday. The film was met with fairly positive reviews, currently holding a 73% on Rotten Tomatoes, and was a moderate financial success, earning $73.2 million on a $25 million budget. It did Developed a cult following over the yearsPart of Kilmer’s memorable performance as the hard-drinking Holiday.
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Wyatt Erp, However, it is not so good. Released on June 24, 1994, it was not well received by critics and currently has a score of 31% on Rotten Tomatoes. It was also a disappointment at the box office, earning only $55.9 million on a $63 million budget. However, a major factor may be that the audience did not want to see another film about the same subject. Still, the consensus of critics and audiences is that tombstone Only has better narrationRegardless of how historically accurate Wyatt Erp could be.
Our take on the films historical accuracy
Both movies still have their merits
Regardless of how historically accurate either film is or isn’t, both films are worth watching for different reasons. While Wyatt Erp It could be a little more meandering and could have used a considerable amount of tightening up, but it’s worth watching for the cast, which includes Costner as Earp and Dennis Quaid as Holliday. As mentioned earlier, tombstone is a better movie overall, and it’s easy to see why it still developed a cult following in the 30 years since its release.
Source: wired