Lone Star scenes: New Mexico stands in for Texas in modern-day Western

The Land of Enchantment serves as the backdrop for the film “Hell or High Water,” which opens today nationwide. And the film is already garnering plenty of accolades as one of the year’s best. The project brought back New Mexico film alums Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine and Ben Foster. (Bridges starred in “True Grit” and “Crazy Heart;” Pine in “Carriers” and Foster in “Lone Survivor” and “3:10 to Yuma.”) The film is a story about the collision of the Old and New West, as two brothers – Toby, played by Chris Pine, a straight-living, divorced father trying to make a better life for his son; and Tanner, played by Ben Foster, a short-tempered ex-con with a loose trigger finger – come together to rob branch after branch of the bank that is foreclosing on their family land. The holdups are part of a last-ditch scheme to take back a future that powerful forces beyond their control have stolen from under their feet. Vengeance seems to be theirs until they find themselves in the cross hairs of a relentless, foul-mouthed Texas Ranger Marcus Hamilton, played by Jeff Bridges, who is looking for one last triumph on the eve of his retirement. Production for the film began in May 2015 and employed more than 100 New Mexico crew members and more than 850 background talent workers, according to the New Mexico Film Office. Locations include Clovis, Estancia, Moriarty, Portales, Tucumcari and Albuquerque, though the film is set in West Texas...more