AVClub: Kiefer Sutherland has been working as an actor since he was a teenager—his first appearance was in Max Dugan Returns, way back in 1983—yet he had never, until now, co-starred in a movie with his father. The two could have chosen a stronger debut family vehicle than Forsaken, a throwback Western that aims for tradition, but winds up embracing cliché. There’s the celebrated gunslinger (Kiefer) who’s trying to reform but gets dragged back into violent action against his will; the unscrupulous land baron (Brian Cox) preparing for a coming railroad by buying up every plot in town, and murdering those who refuse to sell; the villainous dandy (Michael Wincott) with a preference for velvet-tinged intimidation; the abandoned sweetheart (Demi Moore) who’s now married to another man but still clearly in love with our hero; etc. An opportunity to see the Sutherlands onscreen together—with Donald playing Kiefer’s disapproving preacher dad—is the only new thing that Forsaken has to offer. Whether that’s enough will vary according to taste.
Father and son Sutherland team up for a predictable but fun western outing.
Full review by Chris "Wolf Man" Mitchell at Popzara Press
IGN
In the end, there is nothing horribly wrong with Forsaken, but there isn't all that much right about it either. The shootouts aren't terribly special; John Henry's deep, dark, secret isn't all that different; and the plot is so well used that the movie barely explains it, counting on the audience to know McCurdy's motivation from having already seen someone else make the same sort of land grab in some other movie. It isn't unenjoyable, but a month or two after watching Forsaken one would be hard-pressed to identify it from a lineup of westerns if it didn't stand out solely for being the one with both Kiefer and Donald Sutherland. That just isn't enough.
Variety: If “Forsaken” were any more old-fashioned, lenser Rene Ohashi might have filmed it in black-and-white, scripter Brad Mirman definitely would have trimmed the F-bombs from his dialogue, and the entire enterprise probably would bear the brand of RKO or Republic Pictures. Refreshingly and unabashedly sincere in its embrace of Western conventions and archetypes, this pleasingly retrograde sagebrush saga should play exceptionally well with currently under-served genre fans — except, perhaps, for those with low tolerance for salty language – and likely will enjoy a long shelf life as home-screen product after potentially profitable exposure in theatrical corrals.
