Written, produced, edited, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a collection of stories set in the American West as it play into the many adventures of misadventures of people in the West. The film is an anthology film of sorts that play into six different stories relating to the West. Starring Tim Blake Nelson, Tyne Daly, James Franco, Tom Waits, Zoe Kazan, Harry Melling, Liam Neeson, and Brendan Gleeson. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a majestic yet whimsical film from the Coen Brothers.
Set in the American West, the film follow six different stories in the American West as it all relates to the themes of death as well as people’s encounter with it. All of which is told in a book about these tales of the West and these characters as they encounter with some idea of death. In The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, a cowboy arrives into town singing songs as he also disposes challengers through gunfights while also commenting about the ideas of humanity where he meets a new challenger. Near Algodones is about a bank robber is attacked by the bank’s clerk where pots and pans where he’s later knocked out and captured by a mysterious man in black only for the day to get weirder following an attack by the Comanche, an encounter with a drover, and all sorts of bad shit in one strange day. Meal Ticket revolves around an impresario travels through the cold West with his performer in a young legless/armless artist who recites poetry, stories, and other texts where they endure a declining audience and lack of money prompting the impresario to find a new act.
All Gold Canyon, that is based on a story by Jack London, is about a prospector arrives on a mountain valley to find gold as he dwells into the land to find gold where he makes a discovery but also another one that is far more deadly. In The Gal Who Got Rattled that is inspired by story by Stewart Edward White, a young woman is on the Oregon Trail with her dim-witted older brother who dies suddenly of cholera where she befriends a train leader who is sympathetic to her plight as he thinks about having a future with her once the trail ends. The Mortal Remains is about five different people traveling on a stagecoach as tension arises during the journey as they all tell their own views while dealing with the fact that there’s a dead body on top of the stagecoach as some wonder why. These six different stories play into themes that play into the danger and uncertainty of the West as well as the realities of a world that is ever-changing.
The direction of the Coen Brothers definitely owe a lot to Westerns of the past but also provide their own visual language in the film as it relates to the presentation of the different stories in the film. Each story opens with a picture in the book and closes with the last page of that story as it’s told through a book as it would then cut to a landscape as many of the film’s locations are shot in the Nebraskan Panhandle, New Mexico, and Telluride in Colorado. The Coen Brothers’ direction would have these gorgeous wide shots of certain locations where they also create these striking compositions that add to the beauty whether it’s a shot of a man about to be hanged or a certain location in the valley. While there are comical elements in these stories with the titular story being the most comical of them all as it’s partially a musical. The rest range into elements of dark comedy as it relates to the theme of death as it play into the sense of melancholia and changing times of the West that is evident in stories such as Meal Ticket and The Gal Who Got Rattled as the former is largely dramatic and minimalist in its story while the latter is more about this uncertainty on the Oregon Trail.
Serving as editors under the Roderick Jaynes pseudonym, the Coen Brothers’ approach to the editing help add to not just the drama but also humor with its usage of jump-cuts and dissolves along with rhythmic cuts in certain aspects of the film. Most particularly in All Gold Canyon where the prospector (Tom Waits) is digging holes trying to find gold along with the montage of the artist in Harrison (Harry Melling) reciting famous texts to the growing declining audience in Meal Ticket. The usage of close-ups and medium shots are evident in The Mortal Remains as it is shot largely inside the stagecoach to play into the dramatic tension as well as the sense of intrigue of where the five passengers are going. It is the Coen Brothers playing into the dangers of the American West as they definitely show violent moments that are graphic as it add to the specter of death. Overall, the Coen Brothers craft an evocative yet offbeat film about six strange tales in the American West.
Cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its usage of natural lighting for some of the exteriors in the daytime along with the usage of tints and filters for some interior scenes along with shots set at night or in the evening as it’s a highlight of the film. Production designer Jess Gonchor, with set decorator Nancy Haigh plus art directors Steve Christensen and Chris Farmer, does amazing work with the look of the buildings that some of the characters go to including the saloons as well as the stagecoach and wagons for some parts of the film. Costume designer Mary Zophres does fantastic work with the costumes as it play into the period of the times from the shiny look of the titular character to the rougher and ragged look of other cowboys as it’s a highlight of the film.
Makeup effects supervisor Robin Myriah Hatcher does terrific work with the look of the characters with the artist being the most notable as well as a few passengers on the stagecoach. Visual effects supervisors Michael Huber and Alex Lemke do excellent work with the visual effects where it does do bits of set-dressing in some parts while doing its best work on the look of the artist. Sound editors Craig Berkey and Skip Lievsay do superb work with the sound as it help play into the atmosphere of the locations as well as how gunfire and such sounds during a few gun battles in the film. The film’s music by Carter Burwell is incredible for its rich and bombastic musical score that feature some flourishing string arrangements along with elements of folk and country music to play into the air of the times.
The casting by Ellen Chenoweth is wonderful as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from E.E. Bell as a piano saloon player, Tom Proctor as a Cantina bad man, and David Krumholtz as a saloon Frenchman in the titular segment while Jesse Luken as the drover and Ralph Ineson as the Man in Black are terrific in their brief appearances in Near Algodones. In the titular opening segment, the performances of Clancy Brown as the gambler Curly Joe, Willie Watson as a young gunslinger, and Tim Blake Nelson as the titular character are great with Nelson being a jovial and engaging individual who sings about his exploits while being a great gunslinger. In Near Algodones, Stephen Root is fantastic as the bank teller who is more than prepared for a bank robbery while James Franco is superb as the robber who finds himself in dangerous situations. Liam Neeson and Harry Melling are incredible in their respective roles as the impresario and the artist named Harrison in the Meal Ticket segment with Neeson being largely silent as a man trying to make money while Melling displays a charisma through the things he says.
Tom Waits is brilliant as the prospector trying to find gold in All Gold Canyon while Sam Dillon is wonderful in his small role as a young man trying to rob the prospector. In The Girl Who Got Rattled, the performances of Zoe Kazan as Alice Longabaugh, Bill Heck as Billy Knapp, and Grainger Haines as Mr. Arthur are amazing with Kazan being the major standout as a young woman coping with her situation while there’s notable small roles from Jefferson Mays as Alice’s brother Gilbert and Ethan Dubin as Matt who is trying to cheat Alice. In The Mortal Remains, the performances of Tyne Daly as the devout Christian woman, Saul Rubinek as the Frenchman, Chelcie Ross as trapper, Jonjo O’Neill as the Englishman, and Brendan Gleeson as the Irishman all sitting at the stagecoach are excellent to play into the tension and differences of these individuals as they deal with the journey ahead and their destination as well as the reality of their environment.
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a sensational film from Joel and Ethan Coen. Featuring a great ensemble cast, compelling stories on death and the unexpected elements of life, gorgeous cinematography, and an incredible music score and soundtrack. It’s a film that is an unusual yet engaging anthology film of sorts set in the American West that play into all sorts of situations and stories that all relate to uncertainty in those times. In the end, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a phenomenal film from Joel and Ethan Coen.
Coen Brothers Films: Blood Simple - Raising Arizona - Miller's Crossing - Barton Fink - The Hudsucker Proxy - Fargo - The Big Lebowski - O Brother, Where Art Thou? - The Man Who Wasn't There - Intolerable Cruelty - The Ladykillers - Paris Je T'aime-Tulieres -To Each His Own Cinema-World Cinema - No Country for Old Men - Burn After Reading - A Serious Man - True Grit - Inside Llewyn Davis - Hail, Caesar!
The Auteurs #9: The Coen Brothers: Pt. 1 - Pt. 2
© thevoid99 2018
Written and directed by David S. Ward, Major League is the story of a showgirl who has inherited ownership of the Cleveland Indians as she decides to get the worst players in the team in the hopes they finish dead last and move the team to Miami. Once the players full of aging veterans and young upstarts start to show signs of winning, they also learn what their owner is trying to do where they hope to go all the way. It’s a film that doesn’t just explore the world of baseball where players and coaches deal with an entire season where the world is totally against them. They also try to overcome the adversity they were tagged with. Starring Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, Corbin Bernsen, Wesley Snipes, Dennis Haysbert, Chelcie Ross, Rene Russo, Margaret Whitton, Bob Uecker, and James Gammon. Major League is a witty and entertaining film from David S. Ward.
In the world of Major League Baseball, fans always have teams to root for no matter how bad they are yet this is a film set in Cleveland where its team in the Indians have often struggled to get a pennant win as they hadn’t won a pennant since 1948 at the time the film was released in 1989. The film revolves around the scheme of a new owner who wants to ensure that attendance records drop so big that she can move the team to Miami where she would get a luxurious deal. Upon hiring a minor league manager to manage the team and gather a group of player filled with has-been veterans and rookies with very little potential to succeed. Rachel Phelps (Margaret Whitton) hopes her scheme would succeed yet manager Lou Brown (James Gammon) and his team led by veteran catcher Jake Taylor (Tom Berenger) had other plans instead. It’s a film that showcase a group of individuals who all have something different to offer yet manage to show signs they want to be good.
David S. Ward’s screenplay is filled with a lot of humor that includes some profane language in the dialogue that adds spice to the humor. Most notably in the group of misfit characters in the film as Taylor is an aging catcher with bad knees who hopes to get one more good season as well as win back the heart of ex-girlfriend Lynn (Rene Russo). Other characters include the aging pitcher Eddie Harris (Chelcie Ross) who uses all sorts of tricks to pitch good as well as veteran shortstop Roger Dorn (Corbin Bernsen) who is a prima donna that is more concerned with securing a financial future than playing. Then there’s the small group of rookies that the franchise gain as it includes a young pitcher named Ricky Vaughn (Charlie Sheen) who has great arm but lack of control. A power-hitter in the Cuban immigrant Pedro Cerrano (Dennis Haysbert) who practices voodoo in the hopes he can hit curve balls. The final rookie is Willie Mays Hayes (Wesley Snipes) who is a great runner but wasn’t originally invited to try out.
While there is some tension between some of the players such as Cerrano and Harris over religion and Vaughn and Dorn over image as they’re forced to work together to deal with Phelps. While the team does get support in their general manager Charlie Donovan (Charles Cyphers), Phelps’ lack of support by having them ride in bad buses and airplanes only makes the team succeed despite the odds. One aspect of the film that adds to the humor is the commentary by the team’s broadcaster Harry Doyle (Bob Uecker) who always says some funny things while sharing the team’s frustrations as he would say things like “that’s we all we have. One goddamn hit!” His colleague Monty (Skip Griparis) would close the microphone telling “you can’t say ’goddamn’ on the air” where Doyle replies, “don’t worry. Nobody’s listening”. It’s part of the film’s genius as it’s not afraid to be crass while it has a human element that makes the characters very engaging.
Ward’s direction is quite simple as he doesn’t go for any big scenes other than the actual baseball playing scenes while balancing it with drama and humor. Ward’s approach with the latter definitely has a liveliness where it’s not afraid to be confrontational but also in moments where it has a lot of jokes that evolves in the course of the film. Among the gags involve blue-collar workers commenting on the team as well as Japanese field team having their own comments on the team. Ward’s compositions are quite rich in its presentation while some of the film is shot in Milwaukee for some scenes in the film. Still, he is able to make it look like Cleveland where he emphasizes more on its blue-collar locals who are eager to see the Indians go all the way. Even as it climaxes with the big game as it has some funny moments as well as moments to cheer for. Overall, Ward creates a very enjoyable and heartfelt film about a team defying the odds.
Cinematographer Reynaldo Villalobos does excellent work with the film‘s cinematography from the look of the stadium the team plays as well as many of its exterior and interior lighting schemes for some of the scenes at night. Editor Dennis M. Hill does amazing work in creating some stylish montages as well as rhythmic cuts for some of the film‘s humorous moments. Production designer Jeffrey Howard, with set decorator Celeste Lee and art director John Krenz Reinhart Jr., does superb work with the look of the Cleveland Indians stadium and its beat-up buses and planes as well as some of the bars they go to.
Costume designer Erica Edell Phillips does terrific work with the design of the costumes as well as the clothes some of the characters wear to reflect on their personalities. Sound editor J. Paul Huntsman does nice work with the sound in the way the crowd sounds during the games to some of the sounds of the bats hitting the ball. The film’s music by James Newton Howard is fantastic for its swirling electronic score for some of the themes when the Indians start to win as the soundtrack includes songs by Bill Medley, Randy Newman, Lyle Lovett, and X doing a cover of the Troggs’ Wild Thing.
The casting by Joanne Zaluski is brilliant for the ensemble that is created as it includes some notable small roles from Skip Griparis as Harry’s broadcast colleague and Peter Vuckovich as New York Yankees hitter Clu Haywood who always give the Indians problems. Charles Cyphers is terrific as the team’s general manager Charlie Donovan who would eventually tell Brown what Phelps is up to while James Gammon is great as the no-nonsense manager Lou Brown who always speaks the truth and says some funny shit along the way. Bob Uecker is hilarious as Harry Doyle as the team broadcaster who commentates everything that happens while often saying funny things to express his frustrations. Chelcie Ross is wonderful as the aging pitcher Eddie Harris who admits to using all sorts of things to throw good pitches while eventually learns what happens when one steals Jobu’s rum. Margaret Whitton is excellent as the team owner Margaret Phelps who despises the team as she tries to make their life a living hell.
Dennis Haysbert is superb as the voodoo-practicing power-hitter Pedro Cerrano who has this intimidating presence while Wesley Snipes is amazing as the brash but naïve Willie Mays Hayes as a guy that wants to be a star as he eventually becomes one through stealing bases. Rene Russo is fantastic as Taylor’s ex-girlfriend Lynn who is unsure if she wants to get back with him as she has a new life of her own yet becomes impressed when he does take the effort to read some books she had been recommending him. Corbin Bernsen is incredible as the prima donna player Roger Dorn who tries to make himself more valuable only to realize that he’s treated like garbage by Phelps. Charlie Sheen is phenomenal as Ricky “Wild Thing” Vaughn as a young pitcher with a great arm who eventually learns some control to become a top pitcher. Finally, there’s Tom Berenger in a marvelous performance as Jake Taylor as a veteran catcher who leads the team while trying to have one more great season and win back his ex-girlfriend.
Major League is a tremendous film from David S. Ward. Armed with a great cast, moments to cheer for, and some very funny one-liners. It is a film that showcases the love for baseball and why it means so much to people. Especially as it showcases the players as guys just trying to win a game and deal with all sorts of shit. In the end, Major League is an outstanding film from David S. Ward.
David S. Ward Films: (Cannery Row) - (King Ralph) - (The Program) - (Major League II) - (Down Periscope)
Related: (Major League: Back to the Minors)
© thevoid99 2014
Directed by Ramin Bahrani and written by Bahrani and Hallie Elizabeth Newton, At Any Price is the story of a father and son at odds when the latter wants to pursue a career as a race car driver while the former deals with an investigation over his farming business as it goes into chaos. The film is an exploration into the world of father and son and the sacrifices they make. Starring Dennis Quaid, Zac Efron, Heather Graham, Kim Dickens, Clancy Brown, Chelcie Ross, Ben Marten, Red West, and Maika Monroe. At Any Price is an engrossing drama from Ramin Bahrani.
The life of a farmer often endures changing times in order through modern life as the film is about a farmer hoping to keep up with the times and ensure that it will be in the right hands once its inherited to his two sons. Unfortunately, his eldest son hasn’t returned from a personal journey to Argentina while the youngest wants to become a race car driver. The tension between Henry (Dennis Quaid) and Dean Whipple (Zac Efron) is at the heart of the film as Henry tries to be in Dean’s life but Dean wants to be on his own. It’s a film that is an exploration into pride as Henry does things to keep up with the times and ensure the future of his farming business. Yet, his activities would get him in trouble forcing Dean to step in and find out who had been going after his family where both father and son would pay big prices for their sins.
The film’s screenplay doesn’t just explore this growing schism between Henry and Dean but also Henry’s own foolish ambitions as he is convinced by the people he’s working with to expand or die. The film’s opening scene after a montage of home video footage of the Whipple family has Henry talking to Dean about closing a deal as they’re attending a funeral where Henry is hoping to buy some acres of land from that family. It’s that scene where it showcases what kind of man that Henry is but also set the seeds for all of the trouble that he would create for himself and his family. While Henry sells himself as a farmer who likes to charm people and make sure he can help them. He’s a man that cheats on his wife Irene (Kim Dickens) with a mistress named Meredith (Heather Graham) who would also have a tryst with Dean as well as someone who will also cheat his way to get what he wants.
Dean in some respects is like his father as he also has ambitions but in the world of racing as he wants to make it as a race car driver but he is also a troublemaker as he drinks and steals while likes to have his girlfriend Cadence (Maika Monroe) around. Though Dean does help out in the farm and knows how to do things that makes him the more likely candidate to take over the family business that’s been passed from generation to generation. He’s not interested in taking over as he despises his dad for being very pushy as he believes that’s why his older brother Grant (Patrick W. Stevens) has left home. It’s one of the aspects that adds to the drama that makes it very engaging though things do get a bit messy in the third act when both Henry and Dean try to figure out who had put them through this mess where it would add not just trouble but also guilt in both of their parts.
Ramin Bahrani’s direction is very simple in the way he approaches the film though it is different than his previous films which were more about outsiders on the fringes of American society. Still, he manages to convey some idea of realism into his story as it does explore the world of the American farmer who are also outsiders in some respects as they don’t live in big cities. Especially as they’re dealing with a world that is changing as Henry has to keep up with the times as the order is to expand or die. Henry takes up the former in order to compete with other farmers such as Jim Johnson (Clancy Brown) but at the expense of threatening his own family business as his father Cliff (Red West) is aware of the problems his son has caused.
Bahrani’s direction is always gazing into the world of the landscape as much of it is shot on location in Dekalb, Illinois in the U.S. as Iowa as it’s a land that is very rich with its corn and wheat fields. Even in the scenes set in the race tracks showcase a sense of vibrancy and intimacy in Bahrani’s direction though things aren’t well handled in the film’s third act where it does get a bit heavy. Largely as the film leans towards something that doesn’t fit in with the drama but Bahrani does still keep the film focused on the story of father and son as well as the sins they have to deal with. Despite the flaws in its third act, Bahrani manages to create a compelling film about the world of farming and the relationship between father and son.
Cinematographer Michael Simmonds does fantastic work with the film‘s gorgeous photography with the look of the landscape in the film as well as the use of lights for much of the film‘s interior and exterior scenes at night. Editor Affonso Goncalves does excellent work with the film‘s editing by using some rhythmic jump-cuts for some of the racing scenes along with a montage in the film‘s opening credits and some straightforward cuts for the rest of the film. Production designer Chad Keith, with set decorator Adam Willis and art director Jonathan Guggenheim, does brilliant work with the set pieces from the farms that Henry operates to some of the places he and his family go to.
Costume designers Tere Duncan and Sandy Lazar do terrific work with the costumes as it‘s mostly casual and ragged to play into that look of small-town folk. Visual effects supervisor Andre Basso does nice work with some of the film‘s minimal effects which involves some of the racing scenes. Sound editor Abigail Savage does wonderful work with the film‘s sound to play into some of the natural sounds of the locations along with the layers of sounds in the racing scenes. The film’s music by Dickon Hinchcliffe is superb for its mixture of ambient and post-rock music that is the basis for the film score as the film’s music soundtrack from music supervisor Michael Hill largely consists of country and metal tracks where the latter plays into Dean’s world.
The casting by Douglas Aibel is incredible for the ensemble that is created as it includes some notable performances from Chelcie Ross as a seed farmer who needed Henry’s help only to tell Henry the severity of his troubles, Dan Waller as a young farmer Dean and Henry meets at the funeral in the opening moments of the film, Ben Marten as Jim Johnson’s son Brad who despises Dean, Stephen Louis Grush as Dean’s friend Torgeson, Patrick W. Stevens as Henry’s eldest son Grant who only appears briefly in the film’s opening montage credits, and Red West as Henry’s father Cliff who is unsure about his son’s plans as he realizes the trouble that Henry is causing. Clancy Brown is terrific as Henry’s rival Jim Johnson as a farmer who has taken one of Henry’s territories causing Henry to fire back.
Heather Graham is pretty good in an underwritten role as Henry’s mistress Meredith who helps Henry out with his moves while also having a tryst with Dean. Maika Monroe is amazing as Dean’s girlfriend Cadence who helps Henry out with regaining a territory of his while dealing with some of the issues that are causing trouble for both Dean and Henry. Kim Dickens is fantastic as Henry’s wife Irene as she is the bookkeeper of Henry’s work while being the most grounded person in her family as she also knows about Henry’s affairs. Zac Efron is superb as Dean Whipple as a young man eager to make it as a race car driver while having a hard time dealing with his father’s presence as well as the pressure of taking over the family business. Dennis Quaid is incredible as Henry Whipple as a man of great ambition who tries to keep up with the times only for his selfishness and greed would get him in trouble as he faces the sins that he’s created for himself and his son.
At Any Price is an excellent film from Ramin Bahrani that is highlighted by the performances of Dennis Quaid, Zac Efron, and Kim Dickens. While it is a more polished and accessible film in comparison to Bahrani’s previous works. It is still a captivating piece that explores the world of farming and its clash with modernism as well as an intriguing tale about fathers and sons. In the end, At Any Price is a fantastic film from Ramin Bahrani.
Ramin Bahrani Films: Man Push Cart - Chop Shop - Goodbye Solo - Plastic Bag - 99 Homes - (Fahrenheit 451 (2018 film)) - The Auteurs #55: Ramin Bahrani
© thevoid99 2014
