12 Years a Slave

Based on the autobiography by Solomon Northup, 12 Years a Slave is the true story of Northup’s life where he was a free black man living in the North until he is kidnapped in Washington, D.C. where he is sold as a slave as he endures hardships for 12 years. Directed by Steve McQueen and screenplay by John Ridley, the film is an exploration into a man who endures the worst kind of cruelty towards humanity as he deals with the world of slavery as Northup is played by Chiwetel Ejiofor. Also starring Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Paul Giamatti, Sarah Paulson, Alfre Woodard, Lupita Nyong’o, Michael K. Williams, Scott McNairy, and Brad Pitt. 12 Years a Slave is a harrowing yet visceral film from Steve McQueen.

The film is this simple story about a man named Solomon Northup who lived a decent life in Saratoga, New York in 1841 where he is asked by two men to play for a show in Washington, D.C. where he accepts the offer until he wakes up in chains as he’s sold to slavery where he endures cruelty under different masters for 12 years. It’s a film that explores a man who had this very good life in the North where he finds himself in a world that is very different in the South where blacks are treated as a form of property by their masters. The 12-year journey that Northup encounters where he’s called Platt, he doesn’t just see the cruelty of slavery but also how dangerous he is as he’s a man that is educated where slaves tell him to keep his head down and just do your work so there won’t be anymore trouble. Still, he just couldn’t comprehend the atrocities that he sees and endures in the 12 years of being a slave.

John Ridley’s screenplay definitely explores the 12 years of Northup’s life where its first scene is Northup as a slave cutting down sugar canes for another master as he then reflects on the life he had. Much of the film’s first half showcases bits of Northup’s life as a free man while revealing how he had been tricked by two men (Scoot McNairy and Taran Killam) into doing a show for them where he wakes up the next morning in chains. Ridley’s script is largely told from Northup’s perspective as he watches the world he’s in as he has to see a woman named Eliza (Adepero Oduye) be separated from her children as they’re also sold to slavery. Northup’s encounter with slavery has him endure the supervision of different masters where the first is this Baptist preacher in William Ford (Benedict Cumberbatch) who is much kinder to his slave though he’s unaware of the cruelty that his slave overseer in John Tibeats (Paul Dano) who always undermine things and treats Northup with disdain.

While Northup would also work briefly under the supervision of Judge Turner (Bryan Batt) during a seasonal break, Northup would endure the worst under Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender). Epps is this very unique individual whom Ford describes as a man who is willing to break slaves to the core as he has a very sick fascination with the slave Patsey (Lupita Nyong’o) whom he seduces much to the chagrin of his wife (Sarah Paulson) who loathes Patsey. It all plays to Northup dealing with Epps as well as the harsh conditions he endure as a slave picking cotton where if he picked less than the day before. He will get whipped as it’s just one of the many punishments he has to deal with yet clings to some sense of hope as he desperately tries to write a letter to his family and friends in the North but the presence of Epps has him feel uneasy. The film’s third act doesn’t just play into Northup’s sense of hopelessness but also the things he has to do where he does find some hope in a Canadian carpenter named Samuel Bass (Brad Pitt) who learns about Northup’s situation as he would be a key proponent into Northup getting his freedom.

Steve McQueen’s direction is very evocative in the way he presents a world that is beautiful but has this air of ugliness that is prominent throughout for the fact that it’s a film about slavery. A lot of McQueen’s direction is filled with these intoxicating images that mixes beauty and horror while knowing how to put an actor in a frame or to use a close-up to express something by doing very little. Shot on location in New Orleans and other parts of Louisiana, McQueen’s portrait of the American South is very seductive in its beauty yet has this sense of harshness where it’s a place where a slave’s attempt to runaway is more treacherous where Northup would attempt that only to see what will happen as he would never do it again.

There’s also some intimate moments in McQueen’s direction such as the scene of Northup being chained inside a prison cell where it’s very dark with little light to showcase the horror that is to come. Even as McQueen doesn’t shy away from the brutality of the whippings and such where there’s some very chilling scenes that includes one of the most brutal sequences of whipping where it’s the sound of a whip hitting flesh that is the most unsettling. McQueen’s framing and some of the long shots he creates are just a marvel to watch in not just some of the drama that plays out but also some of the sense of terror that occurs. Though there are bits of humor in the film, it’s only just small bits as it plays into the drama and turmoil that Solomon Northup endures as the film’s ending is an absolute tearjerker. Overall, McQueen creates a very exhilarating yet haunting film about a man who endures the cruelty of slavery.

Cinematographer Sean Bobbitt does some amazing work with the film‘s photography from the look of the Louisiana swamp landscapes and scenes set in the forest with its use of natural lights to some of the shadings and lighting schemes he uses for some of the film‘s interiors as well as the scenes set at night. Editor Joe Walker does brilliant work with the editing with its use of jump-cuts, rhythmic cuts, and dissolves to play into that sense of horror and drama that Northup endures. Production designer Adam Stockhausen, with set decorator Alice Baker and art director David Stein, does fantastic work with the set pieces from the plantations that Northup works at to the look of the homes and places that Northup lived before his capture.

Costume designer Patricia Norris does superb work with the costumes from the dresses the mistresses wear as well as the suits that the men wear as well as the rags the slaves have to wear. Sound editors Ryan Collins and Robert Jackson do excellent work with the sound work from the way dialogue is meshed in certain scenes to some sound effects that occur in the film such as the whippings and such to play into the sense of power in those moments. The film’s music by Hans Zimmer is phenomenal for its mixture of low-key orchestral music to some tremendous pieces that mixes some haunting percussions and string arrangements that play into the terror that occurs in the film.

The casting by Francine Maisler is incredible for the ensemble that is created as it features some notable small appearances from Quvenzhane Wallis and Cameron Zeigler as Northup’s children, Kelsey Scott as Northup’s wife Anne, Michael K. Williams as slave Northup meets early in the film, Garret Dillahunt as a drunkard who works with Northup picking Cotton, Dwight Henry as a slave Northup befriends in Uncle Dwight, Bryan Batt as the fair-minded slave master Judge Turner who would get Northup a job at a party, Liza J. Bennett as Ford’s wife, Chris Chalk as a slave Northup meets who tells him to not act too smart, and J.D. Evermore as Ford’s overseer Chapin who is forced to watch the action of Tibeats.

Other noteworthy performances include Scoot McNairy and Taran Killam as the two men who would trick and drug Northup into a job that would lead to his enslavement while Alfre Woodard is wonderful as a plantation mistress whom Patsey likes to drink tea with. Paul Giamatti is terrific as the slave trader Theophilius Freeman who does things to sell the slaves and presents them in the most cruel ways. Adepero Oduye is superb as the slave Eliza who deals with being separated from her children as she reminds Northup of the cruelty he has to face as a slave. Paul Dano is excellent as the slave master John Tibeats who sings a very horrific song while feeling threatened by Northup for being someone who can speak his mind and please Ford. Brad Pitt is amazing in a small yet cruel role as Samuel Bass who works with Northup during his time with Epps as he learns about his plight.

Sarah Paulson is brilliant as Mrs. Epps as a woman who loathes Patsey as she treats her with the worst kind of cruelty as she someone who proves to be just as extreme as her husband. Benedict Cumberbatch is marvelous as the kind William Ford who is intrigued by Northup as he gives him a violin while dealing with the cruelty of Tibeats as he makes an uneasy decision about giving Northup up. Lupita Nyong’o is tremendous as Patsey as this young slave woman who becomes this object of desire for Epps as she faces some of the most horrific moments a slave has to endure as it’s a performance that is just unforgettable to watch.

Michael Fassbender is remarkable as the cruel yet twisted plantation owner Edwin Epps who is a man that is just extreme in the way he treats his slaves as well as having this sick desire towards Patsey. There’s also this very haunting presence that Fassbender presents as a man who could probably kill someone as well as being ignorant about his ideas of the world. Finally, there’s Chiwetel Ejiofor in an outstanding performance as Solomon Northup. Ejiofor brings a sense of grounding to a man who faces a world that is different from the one he had lived in as he tries not to do anything yet is aware of how much of a threat he is. There’s also that sense of sadness and determination in Ejiofor’s performance to display a man who deals with not just loss but also the hopelessness of not being able to return home as it’s really a performance for the ages.

12 Years a Slave is a magnificent film from Steve McQueen that features a tour-de-force performance from Chiwetel Ejiofor. Along with a great supporting cast and some amazing technical work from cinematographer Sean Bobbit and music composer Hans Zimmer. It’s a film that explores not just the horrific atrocity of slavery but also from the perspective of a free black man who is captured and endures this horror for 12 years as it’s told by McQueen and screenwriter John Ridley at its most visceral. In the end, 12 Years a Slave is a massively astonishing film from Steve McQueen.

Steve McQueen Films: Hunger - Shame - Widows (2018 film) - Small Axe - (Uprising (2022 film)) - (Occupied City) - (Blitz) - The Auteurs #52: Steve McQueen

© thevoid99 2013

Looper

Written and directed by Rian Johnson, Looper is the story of a time-traveling assassin who kills people in the past as he learns that his next target is an older version of himself. The film is a sci-fi thriller that explores the world of time travel and identity as it revolves around a young man dealing with his job and its implications where he makes a drastic discovery about who he is and who is he working for. Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt, Paul Dano, Piper Perabo, Noah Segan, Pierce Gagnon, Garret Dillahunt, Tracie Thoms, and Jeff Daniels. Looper is an incredible yet complex film from Rian Johnson.

Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a paid assassin called a looper whose job is to kill men who have been sent from the future under the orders of the mob. It’s a job that has kept Joe rich as he works for Abe (Jeff Daniels) who makes sure things are good as Joe is paid in silver and later gold once he kills a future version of himself. When one of his friends in Seth (Paul Dano) has left his future self (Frank Brennan) go, he becomes scared until Joe reluctantly hides him as Kid Blue (Noah Segan) arrives searching for Seth as Abe makes Joe an offer he couldn’t refuse. High on drugs and reeling from his work as a looper, Joe forges ahead to his next assignment where he suddenly faces his old self (Bruce Willis) who escapes and goes on the run. With Joe searching for his old self, he later meets his old self who has arrived from the future to kill their mysterious boss known as the Rainmaker.

With old Joe continuing on the run and goes on the search for the person that would become the Rainmaker, young Joe finds a location on a map that the old Joe had which leads him to a farm where a woman named Sara (Emily Blunt) lives with her son Cid (Pierce Gagnon). Young Joe decides to protect Sara and Cid from the other loopers and Old Joe who is searching for someone who could become the Rainmaker. While at the farm, a hired gunner from Abe in Jesse (Garret Dillahunt) arrives to find young Joe as young Joe and Cid hide out until Jesse later comes back where young Joe makes a chilling discovery about what Cid is. Realizing the implications of what would happen, young Joe decides to do whatever it takes to save Cid and Sara from old Joe and the other loopers.

What happens when a young man faces an older version of himself who comes from the future to stop something from happening? That’s sort of the idea of the film that writer-director Rian Johnson makes as it is about an assassin who is paid to kill future targets for the mob that he would never see and know about. When he faces himself who arrives from the future to stop someone would become this major mob force, the young man has to realize the implications of what might happen as it would lead to all sorts of trouble.

Johnson’s screenplay is quite intricate in terms of its narrative as it starts out in a straightforward manner to establish young Joe’s life in the first act where he is definitely a very troubled yet skilled assassin who is also a junkie. When he faces his old self, things become complicated as Johnson creates an alternate narrative that unveils what would’ve happened if the young Joe had killed his old self where it would chronicle Joe’s life as a killer and then finding salvation in a woman (Xu Qing) who would become his wife. Yet, it would drive the old Joe to go back in time to save his wife but also to stop the person that would become the Rainmaker as the second act is about the two Joes and the young Joe’s meeting with Sara. The third act is more interesting where it reveals more complexities about what the old Joe wants to do as well as the danger that is going to happen.

Johnson’s script doesn’t just feature a lot of complexities in terms of the characters that are created as well as its development. Notably in the characterization of Joe who deals with the fact that he’s just trying to do his job and try to kill his old self only to realize that ther is a life outside of the world of being a looper. Johnson’s approach to stylish dialogue definitely adds a sense of nuance to the script where it’s set in the future and there’s a lot of things that are happening that sets the rich and poor apart.

Johnson’s direction is definitely ambitious in terms of the presentation he aims for in creating a film that is set in the future. Shot on location in New Orleans and parts of Louisiana as Kansas along with scenes in Shanghai, Johnson goes for a lot of wide shots but also some interesting medium shots to establish a future that isn’t too far off but also slower in its development. Since it adds to the sci-fi elements of the film, it also gives Johnson the chance to create a future that doesn’t play to typical aspects of other sci-fi films by grounding it with a bit of realism.

The film’s element of suspense and action definitely plays to the story where it includes a key scene where the old Joe goes after one of his targets where Johnson knows what not to shoot in order to tell the story and then unveil the impact that follows. Even in the film’s third act where things become unveiled into what the two Joes are facing as it raises a lot of questions into what has to be done. Through these amazing wide shots along with some intimate close-ups of the characters, Johnson’s direction is very fluid in its movements along with the way he presents action scenes to get the audience aware of what is going on. Overall, Johnson creates a truly dazzling and mesmerizing sci-fi thriller that manages to be engaging in its high-brow concept.

Cinematographer Steve Yedlin does brilliant work with the film‘s colorful photography from the stylish nighttime interiors at the club Joe and his friends hang out to the more naturalistic look of the field scenes outside of the city. Editor Bob Duscay does excellent work with the editing by creating a montage early in the film to showcase young Joe‘s troubled life as well as some rhythmic cuts to play out the film‘s action and suspense. Production designer Ed Verreaux and art director James A. Gelarden do great work with the set pieces from the nightclub that Joe hangs out at to the farm that Sara lives along with props that adds to the sci-fi element of the film like the hover-motorcycle.

Costume designer Sharen Davis does nice work with the costumes as it‘s mostly casual for both Sarah and old Joe while the younger Joe wears more expensive suits to establish his character. Makeup artist Kazuhiro Tsuji does some very good makeup work to have the two Joes look like each other with some prosthetic hair and such for the characters. Visual effects supervisor Karen E. Goulekas does some superb work with the visual effects from the exteriors of the futuristic Kansas City to the jaw-dropping sequences in the film‘s third act. Sound designer Jeremy Peirson does some fantastic work with the film‘s sound in the way some of the machines sound like along with the intimacy that is created in scenes at the farm.

The film’s music by Nathan Johnson is wonderful for its suspenseful driven score that is a mixture of electronic music and orchestral pieces as it features lots of bombastic themes as well as other dramatic moments. Music supervisor John Houlihan creates a terrific soundtrack that features all sorts of music ranging from acts like the Mashnotes, Kid Koala, Richard and Linda Thompson, Son Lux, and Warren Zevon.

The casting by Lindsay Graham and Mary Vernieu is phenomenal for the ensemble that is created as it features some notable small performances from Tracie Thoms as a waitress young Joe sees every day at a diner, Nick Gomez as a fellow looper, Frank Brennan as the old Seth, Xu Qing as the old Joe’s wife, Garret Dillahunt as the hired gunner Jesse, and Piper Perabo as the showgirl Suzie who young Joe spends time with early in the film. Paul Dano is pretty good as the looper Seth who suddenly faces himself as he becomes scared of the consequences. Noah Segan is wonderful as the Gat Man Kid Blue who is trying to get things done in order to please Abe. Jeff Daniels is great as the crime boss Abe who tries to ensure that things are taken care of while making young Joe a tempting offer that would later cause a lot of trouble.

Pierce Gagnon is amazing as the young kid Cid who befriends the young Joe while revealing some things that would have the young Joe be very suspicious about. Emily Blunt is amazing as Cid’s mother Sara who tries to protect her son while helping the young Joe in realizing about what is happening in relation to her young son. Bruce Willis is outstanding as the old Joe who returns to his past from the future to find the Rainmaker and deal with his younger self as Willis brings a great sense of grit and weariness to the character. Finally, there’s Joseph Gordon-Levitt in an incredible performance as the young Joe where he tries to deal with his own issues as a person while realizing about the troubles of time travel when he faces his older self as it’s a really captivating performance from Gordon-Levitt.

Looper is a spectacular and thrilling film from Rian Johnson that features marvelous performances from Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, and Emily Blunt. The film is definitely a sci-fi thriller that bears a lot of interesting concepts about time travel as well as the dangers of it. Even as it involves themes that raises a lot of questions about its dangers where it becomes a compelling suspense film. In the end, Looper is a superb film from Rian Johnson.

Rian Johnson Films: Brick - The Brothers Bloom - The Last Jedi - Knives Out - Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery - (Knives Out 3)

© thevoid99 2012

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 3/4/08 w/ Additional Edits.

Based on Ron Hansen's novel, the film is about Jesse James' final years as an outlaw while planning a new robbery with his gang. Part of his gang is a man named Robert Ford who would become his assassin. Adapted into script and directed by Andrew Dominik of Chopper fame, the film is an eerie, sensitive portrait of not just James but also Ford. Playing the two leading roles are Brad Pitt as Jesse James and Casey Affleck as Robert Ford. With a cast that includes Sam Shepard, Paul Schneider, Sam Rockwell, Mary-Louise Parker, Jeremy Renner, and Zooey Deschanel. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is a harrowing yet enchanting film from Andrew Dominik and company.

It's September 1881 as Jesse James and his older brother Frank (Sam Shepard) are about to do another train heist which would be Frank's final heist. Joining them in the Missouri forest are Ed Miller (Garrett Dillahunt), Dick Liddil (Paul Schneider), Jesse's cousin Wood Hite (Jeremy Renner), Charley Ford (Sam Shepard), and his 19-year old little brother Robert. Robert is enamored by the presence of the James brothers as he grew up reading stories about Jesse as he idolized the outlaw. While the heist was a modest success, Frank seemed to have had enough as he's surrounded by young men and his relationship with Jesse has become temperamental. With Jesse hiding in Kansas City with his wife Zee (Mary Louise-Parker) and their children Mary (Brooklynn Proux) and Tim (Dustin Bollinger). Frank has now decided to depart not knowing it would be the last time he would see his younger brother.

With Charley and Wood sent to hide at the home of Martha Bolton (Alison Elliott), Robert was asked to stay to help Jesse with a few things before being sent to Martha's home where he meets with his older brother along with Wood and Dick. Dick and Wood leave to live with Wood's father (Tom Aldredge) and young wife Sarah (Kailin See) whom Dick seduces. One day, Ed gets a visit from Jesse about some rumors including the men who had been captured from the previous train heist. Meanwhile, tension between Hite and Liddil came ahead as Robert found himself involved. Following that confrontation, Jesse arrives as he has dinner with Wilbur Ford (Pat Healey), Martha, Charley, and Robert as Charley tells stories about Robert's childhood where Robert was taunted by Jesse. Then all of a sudden, Robert makes a move to reveal the whereabouts of Dick Liddil to Sheriff Timberlake (Ted Levine).

Robert Ford suddenly becomes a private investigator for Timberlake as he and Liddil have a private meeting with Governor Crittenden (James Carvell). With Charley now riding along with Jesse, talks about possible robberies where in the works as Robert joins Charley and Jesse. Things become filled with tension as if Robert is believing that Jesse is aware that he's going to die at age 34. Then on April 3, 1882, Robert Ford becomes famous as he kills Jesse James at his family home. A year later, Robert Ford is known to the world but to some, he's branded as a coward. With Charley regretting about his involvement, Robert Ford finds himself troubled with this name as coward. Ten years later in Colorado, he meets Dorothy Evans (Zooey Deschanel) as he tries to come to terms on what he had done as a man named Edward O'Kelly (Michael Copeman) hunts for him.

The story about Jesse James and his infamy is known to the world for his reckless killings of innocent people and robberies. While some might enjoy his infamy for the fact that he was a Southern who hated the politics of the time as well as rich people, he was a complex individual that some said was a modern-day Robin Hood. Yet, this film about Jesse James' final days reveal a much harrowing tale as a man who is aware that he knows that he's going to die but the question is, who will kill him? That answer comes in the form of a young man named Robert Ford. Here is a man who starts out as a young kid who worshiped the altar of Jesse James only until James' bullying and taunts get to him as he becomes this obsessed, laconic killer only to be called a coward as James' name lives on through infamy.

Andrew Dominik deserves credit for his eerie character study of the two individuals as well as the people who surround him. Jesse's elder brother Frank who seems tired of robberies as well as the young men that idolize Jesse. The members of Jesse's gang like Dick Liddil, Wood Hite, and Ed Miller who are trying to figure out Jesse's state of mind while Charley Ford is also part of that gang as he also watches Jesse's descent into madness and then seeing his brother become a public figure. The film is really a tale of madness and disintegration in the eyes of both an outlaw and his assassin. While his script unveils layers of characters and their paranoia around Jesse James, it's through his dream-like direction that is more startling.

The film's obvious influence is Terrence Malick, the brilliant yet reclusive filmmaker whose films often include naturalistic, epic images of nature, epic elliptical pacing, a narration, and poetic dialogue. Dominik clearly uses Malick's unique filmmaking style to tell this haunting story of Jesse James' final days and his encounter with Robert Ford. The film features a third-person narration by Hugh Ross that reveals part of Jesse James' state of mind in his final days and legends along with additional back story. While the narration might seem to act as spoiler of sorts, it lets the story flow easily as Dominik through his observant camera let the acting unfold. The film in a lot of ways looks and feels like a Malick film, notably his 1978 film Days of Heaven. Shot on location in Canada, the film doesn't look or feel like a Western since it's set in the American mid-west.

Dominik creates a crystalline portrait of James with very few colors and the camera sometimes being a bit blurry to convey the dream-like tone of the film. While audiences might seem to be put off by its slow pace, it is deliberate to tell its study of madness while being a film that is a revisionist western of sorts told dramatically. This is a film that clearly reveals that the western genre is starting to come back and engaging itself into new territory. The film's 160-minute running time might seem overwhelming but the result is a strong film. Yet, it should be noted that the film went through various running times and test screening meaning that Dominik didn't have final cut since it was produced by Ridley Scott and Brad Pitt. Still, the final cut of this film is superb without delving into pretentiousness as its dreamlike, laconic, haunting approach through Dominik's direction is truly one of the best films of 2007.

Cinematographer Roger Deakins creates an exquisite look to the film that isn't just similar to the wondrous, natural, dream-like cinematography of the late Nestor Almendros and Haskell Wexler in their work in Days of Heaven. The film also recalls the work of Vilmos Zsigmond for such films as Robert Altman's McCabe & Mrs. Miller and Michael Cimino's film Heaven's Gate. Deakins' look of the exteriors with shots of nature and skylines are jaw-droppingly beautiful. Even the scenes in the woods and snow are shot with amazing colors and shades to convey the different moods of Jesse James and later on, Robert Ford. The interior sequences, notably the train scene are wonderfully shot with intimacy swept with sepia-like colors and tones to help convey a dream-like look. If the film has a technical highlight that is worth noting, it's the cinematography of Roger Deakins.

Editors Dylan Tichenor, Curtiss Clayton, and Michael Kahn (who did additional editing following its test screening) is superb for its sense of transitional cuts, dissolves, fade-outs, and jump-cuts to convey the film's sense of action as well as living up to its elliptical, pacing style with its 160-minute running time. Art director Troy Sizemore and set decorator Janice Blackie-Goodine do an amazing job in creating the period look of the late 19th Century mid-west with its look of towns and homes to create an American, mid-western look and feel. Costume designer Patricia Norris, who was also the costume designer in Days of Heaven, does an exquisite job in the look of the cowboys and women in 19th Century period dresses that matches the film's dark, dream-like look with very little colors. Sound designers Christopher S. Aud and Richard King do a brilliant job in capturing the atmosphere of the landscapes and shootouts as well as the land to convey the mood of Jesse James.

Another of the film's amazing technical achievements goes to the film's haunting score by alt-rock icon Nick Cave and Warren Ellis of Cave's band the Bad Seeds. The music features chime-like themes to convey its dreamlike mood while using broken pianos and instruments to help play true to the period. The score is filled with sweeping arrangements as well as pieces of music that is haunting as Cave makes an appearance singing a traditional song about Jesse James. The music of Cave and Ellis is truly superb in capturing the mood of the film and its characters.

The casting by Mali Finn is superb as the various small roles from Sarah Lind as a girlfriend of Robert Ford, Jesse Freschette as Robert and Charley's young cousin Albert, Joel McNichol as a train messenger, Lauren Calvert as Martha's daughter Ida, and Michael Parks as Henry Craig. Other memorable small parts that include Brooklynn Proux and Dustin Bollinger as Jesse's two kids, Michael Copeman as a man hunting for Robert Ford, Tom Aldredge as Major Hite, Sarah Kailin as Major Hite's young wife, Ted Levine as Sheriff Timberlake, Pat Healey as Wilbur Ford, and an appearance from political analyst James Carvell as Governor Crittenden. While the parts of women don't seem to play any big roles for a film that's mainly about men. Allison Elliott, Zooey Deschanel, and Mary Louise-Parker do fill their roles with grace. Elliott as the maternal-like Martha Bolton, Zooey Deschanel as Robert Ford's girlfriend in his final years, and Mary Louise-Parker as Jesse James' wife Zee who doesn't care about Jesse's antics only until after his death.

Garrett Dillahunt is great as paranoid Ed Miller whose alliance with Liddil about going to another gang gets him in trouble as he fears for Jesse. Jeremy Renner is also great in his role as Jesse's cousin Wood Hite who begins a feud with Liddil following Liddil's encounter with Wood's stepmother. Paul Schneider is brilliant as the laconic, poetic Dick Liddil whose love for women and the world around him makes him a fascinating character who likes to seduce women while providing the catalyst for Ford's assassination of James. Sam Shepard is great as the grizzled, tired Frank James who seems to feel tired being around young men as well as Jesse's reckless behavior. The film's best supporting performance goes to Sam Rockwell as Charley Ford. Rockwell plays a man who joins Jesse's gang as he brings his younger brother along. Watching Jesse's state of mind go nuts while watching himself in paranoia believing he was killed. Rockwell's performance is superb as he plays the film's observer watching both James and his own brother disintegrate.

Brad Pitt is in fantastic form as Jesse James. Pitt's performance is very layered with a sense of recklessness, melancholia, and a troubling state of mind. Pitt carries a presence and charisma that is perfect for the character of Jesse James as he uses his smile and unpredictable mood swings to play a character as complex as Jesse James in what is clearly one of his best performances. While Pitt is in great form, he is not the best performance of the film that really goes to his co-star Casey Affleck as his assassin, Robert Ford. Affleck's wild-eyed performance is wonderfully layered as an innocent, childlike young man who idolizes James in ever way as brings an innocence to the role. When the character starts to develop, Affleck's performance becomes much darker and more subtle as he becomes this laconic figure who starts to resent his idol as he becomes his assassin. Affleck's performance is brilliant in every scene up to the last frame when he seems weathered and troubled. While Pitt may have top billing, it's Affleck who is really the film's star.

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is an enchanting, eye-wielding, and stunning film from Andrew Dominik and company led by a great cast that includes Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sam Shepard, Paul Schneider, Jeremy Renner, Mary-Louise Parker, Garrett Dillahunt, Zooey Deschanel, and Sam Rockwell. Fans of the western genre will no doubt be amazed by this dream-like interpretation of the outlaw Jesse James and his assassin Robert Ford. While some audiences might be put off by its dream-like approach and elliptical pacing, it's a film fans of bio-pics and the western genre might enjoy with additional commendation to cinematographer Roger Deakins and music composers Nick Cave and Warren Ellis. In the end, for a dream-like western that gives the genre a new twist, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is the film to go see.

Andrew Dominik Films: Chopper - Killing Them Softly - One More Time with Feeling - This Much I Know to Be True - Blonde (2022 film)

© thevoid99 2012

No Country for Old Men

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 11/22/07 w/ Additional Edits.

Based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy, No Country for Old Men is the story of a man who finds dead bodies in a shootout and a suitcase with two million dollars in cash. Suddenly, an investigation over the dead bodies is made by a sheriff while a killer is looking for his lost money. Written for the screen, produced, and directed by Joel & Ethan Coen, the film is a return to the crime films of their past work to study a war as it baffles an aging sheriff caught up in changing times. With an all-star cast that includes Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Kelly MacDonald, Woody Harrelson, Barry Corbin, Beth Grant, Tess Harper, Coen Brothers regular Stephen Root, and Tommy Lee Jones. No Country for Old Men is a haunting, visceral, and chilling film from the Coen Brothers.

It's 1980 in a desert in Texas as a man named Llewellyn Moss (Josh Brolin) is deer hunting as he hears gunshots from the other side of the desert. He walks into a slew of dead bodies with a man wounded asking for water. He then finds another dead man under a tree with a shiny pistol and a suitcase filled with two million dollars in cash. He returns home to his trailer park residence where his wife Carla Jean (Kelly MacDonald) was waiting for him. She wonders about the money he's just found as Llewellyn hopes he uses it for little things. Later that night, he wakes up returning to the scene of the crime hoping to help the wounded man only to be chased by a gang of Mexican drug dealers and a dog as he returns home telling Carla Jean to leave town and live with her mother (Beth Grant).

Meanwhile, a sociopathic killer named Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) is trying to find the lost money as he later kills his employers and others to find his money. After killing several people for their cars, he goes on the hunt for Llewellyn Moss as an investigation over the drug deal with dead bodies lying around is underway by a sheriff named Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones). With his young deputy Wendell (Garret Dillahunt) assisting, they ponder on who did the deed while finding Llewellyn's truck. With Anton's bloody manhunt continues, Llewellyn is still evading him while wondering who is hunting him down. With the money now lost, it's up to a bounty hunter named Carson Wells to find the money for a businessman (Stephen Root) to recover from the botched drug deal.

After another near-encounter with Chigurh that becomes bloody, Llewellyn flees to Mexico where he is met by Wells who tells him about Chigurh. With Wells as Moss' only hope, he returns to the U.S. to be with Carla Jean who has been questioned by sheriff Bell about what happened. On the day he arrives, she calls Bell for help where suddenly, things become tragic as Bell is forced to ponder the changing times as he talks to his uncle Ellis (Barry Corbin) about the way the world works.

Returning to some of the crime elements in films like Blood Simple and Fargo, the Coen Brothers lean towards the novel by Cormac McCarthy about this simple story of a man who finds money only to be hunted by a killer with a sheriff trying to piece everything together. While little was reportedly changed from the original book to the Coens' adapted script including the dialogue, the story is definitely relevant to many of the Coen Brothers themes of symbolism and morality. Another theme that the film explore is sin, particularly greed as it's the catalyst for the film's plot. The money is the symbol of all greed with Chigurh, Moss, and Wells all wanting the money yet for different reasons. Wells wants it for the businessman while Moss is more of a simple man, and then there's Chigurh.

Anton Chigurh is a villain that is rarely seen in films. He’s violent, anti-social, remorseless, humorless, and certainly scary. While there is no clear motive on why he wants his money, he is a man that is willing to have it by any means necessary. No matter who he kills. He is certainly someone that has a presence where it's clear that once he's in a scene in the story, trouble is about to happen. Then there's Llewellyn Moss who is basically a simple man that has a bit of intelligence while knowing he's about to do something really stupid. Moss is a character audiences care about despite the fact he's a simple man.

Then there's the character of Ed Tom Bell, who begins the film with a voice-over narration about the way the world is changing for elders who couldn't keep up with the changing times. Bell is a man who seems content about his job and life yet has a few regrets. When he is faced with this investigation, it gives him a chance to do something good and maybe have a bit of redemption. Yet, his conflict isn't just this crime but action and cruelty of this crime that he is baffled by. It's the script by the Coens and their faithfulness to McCarthy's work that is amazing for its structure with the first act being about the found money and Chigurh's manhunt for Llewllyn, the second act is about that continued manhunt and Bell's confusion over the modern world. The third act is more about Bell and how he relates to things as well as loss. His loss isn't just about what happens but the world around him as he turns to his Uncle Ellis as he too is having trouble understanding the world.

The direction of the Coen Brothers is potent as ever with its use of locations shot in Texas and New Mexico. From its eye-weilding imagery to stylized scenery, Joel and Ethan Coen definitely create situations that wouldn't be shown in a Hollywood film. Notably the violence which acts as a sense of force and an element of surprise. Their take on the film's violence is visceral indeed from the opening sequences of Chigurh killing a deputy and then another man. For some scenes, the Coens know when not to show an act of killing even though the audience knows what was going to happen. The sense of tension and momentum throughout the film is superb with everything not being too fast or too slow. The pacing they use works on every level to convey the suspense. More importantly, the Coens' approach to storytelling with their compositions of scenes and presentation is insatiable.

One thing that a lot of audiences might be baffled about the film is its ending which is abrupt. What the Coens is emphasizing is the film's theme and most of all, it's title. It's about everything that has just happened and how one of its protagonist is dealing with everything. While that character may be rambling about something, it's only to reflect what the character is going through. It might seem confusing at first but once it's being replayed in the mind, it becomes understandable. That's what the Coens are trying to do while giving the audience something to think about in their own interpretations. The result overall is the Coen Brothers making a film that is haunting and as hypnotic as some of their previous work.

Longtime cinematographer Roger Deakins brings out some of his best camera work to date with eerie, dream-like photography style for many of the film's exterior sequences. Notably Llewellyn's chase in the desert as well as the nighttime scenes in Texas and Mexico. The interior sequences are done with amazing, low-light shades and darkness to give the film that haunting look. The cinematography of Deakins isn't just something that many cinematographers will love but also worthy of awards. The film's editing by the Coens under their Roderick Jaynes alias is also potent for their energetic, well-paced editing style to convey the suspense and tone of the film as Jaynes' work is amazing.

Production designer Jess Gonchor with art director John P. Goldsmith is excellent for its old-school, Texan look whether it's the cowboy shops, the trailer park home of the Moss', or the down-home look of Bell's home that is simple yet clean. The overall look in the production is amazing for its authenticity to convey what is America. Longtime costume designer Mary Zophres does some great work in the film's clothes with the use of cowboy hats for the characters of Bell, Moss, and Wells along with the dresses of Carla Jean Moss that are very simple. Longtime sound editor Skip Lievsay with sound designer Craig Berkey create a unique tone to the entire film for the fact that there's no film score played throughout the entire film. Instead, Lievsay and Berkey create sounds for the film's suspense and violence as their work is just amazing on every level. While longtime music composer Carter Burwell's work is minimal, he does create an eerie, ominous score with dense arrangements for the film's final credits.

The films casting by Ellen Chenoweth is amazing for notable small performances from Eduardo Antonio Garcia as the wounded man from the shootout, Zach Hopkins as the deputy killed early in the film, and Kit Gwin as Bell's secretary Molly. Other notable small performances from characters Barry Corbin and Beth Grant are superb with Corbin as the laconic Uncle Ellis and Grant in a funny role as Carla Jean's mother. Tess Harper is excellent in the role of Bell's wife who only appears in a few scenes but is a woman who is trying to understand her husband's alienation with the modern world. Coen Brothers regular Stephen Root is great in his brief performance as a businessman who hires Wells to track down the money while Garret Dillahunt is brilliant as Bell's young partner who scours around every crime scene asking Bell questions. Woody Harrelson's small role as Carson Wells is great for its laid-back humor and experience of a bounty hunter who knows Chigurh all too well and how he plays the game.

Scottish actress Kelly MacDonald is amazing as Carla Jean Moss, an innocent woman who is unaware of what her husband is trying to do despite her love for him. MacDonald does a great Texan accent while her performance is amazing for how she seeks help from Bell while having an amazing scene near the end about her own fate that shows her subtlety and restraint to everything that's happened to her. Josh Brolin is equally as great in the role of Llewellyn Moss, a simple man who doesn't know what he put himself through. Brolin's performance is very rugged and laconic as a Texan who knows he isn't the smartest man in the world while proving that he could go toe-to-toe with a psychopath like Chigurh. Brolin, who is having a breakout year with appearances in Robert Rodriguez's Grindhouse segment in Planet Terror, Ridley Scott's American Gangster, and Paul Haggis' n the Valley of Elah with Tommy Lee Jones as he is now destined for stardom.

Tommy Lee Jones is in masterful form as the wise Ed Tom Bell. Jones' performance is very grizzled and often with dead-pan humor that includes rambling stories about people he know. Yet, Jones performance isn't just hypnotic but also mesmerizing for the way he looks at the world and how he tries to do good. Tommy Lee Jones doesn't just earn another winning performance but one that most actor should look up to. Finally, there's Javier Bardem in what has to be his most chilling performance yet as Anton Chigurh. If there was a Hell-in-a-Cell match with Jason, Hannibal Lector, Freddy Krueger, and every other super-villain on film, Chigurh would win hands down. Bardem never goes over-the-top throughout his performance but his restraint is so eerie, it's definitely a performance that is unforgettable. While also sporting a Texan accent of sorts, Bardem definitely hides in character with a haircut that's almost comical until he starts killing. That's when he reveals he isn't funny and is all about business. Bardem rarely smiles in the film and if the Academy overlooks this performance, then the Oscars ain’t worth winning.

No Country for Old Men is a quintessential, harrowing, shocking film from Joel and Ethan Coen with a great cast that includes Javier Bardem, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, and Kelly MacDonald. Fans of the Coen Brothers will no doubt rank this film up there with a lot of their many great films while those who loved the Cormac McCarthy novel will enjoy the film for its symbolism and themes. In the end, this is a film not for the faint of heart, especially for anyone who isn't into any kind of violence. Still, No Country for Old Men isn't just one of 2007's best films but it's a sign that the Coen Brothers are back in business.

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 (2004 film) - Paris Je T'aime-Tuileries - To Each His Own Cinema-World Cinema - Burn After Reading - A Serious Man - True Grit (2010 film) - Inside Llewlyn Davis - Hail, Caesar! - The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

The Auteurs #9: The Coen Brothers Pt. 1 - The Auteurs #9: The Coen Brothers Pt. 2

© thevoid99 2012

Winter's Bone

Based on Daniel Woodrell’s novel, Winter’s Bone tells the story of a 17-year old girl living in poverty with her young siblings at the Ozarks Mountains.  When the home she and her sibling live in is in danger as they face even worse poverty, the girl tries to find her father where she discovers a dark world of drugs as she turns to her uncle for help.  Directed by Debra Granik with a script adapted by Granik and Anne Rosellini, the film is a haunting coming-of-age tale set into a world that is mystifying as rural as the Ozarks.  Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Garrett Dillahunt, Dale Dickey, Lauren Sweetser, Sheryl Lee, and John Hawkes.  Winter’s Bone is a compelling yet harrowing drama from Debra Granik and company.

17-year old Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) lives in a rural area in the Ozarks Mountains in Missouri with her two young siblings in Sonny (Isaiah Stone) and Ashlee (Ashlee Thompson).  Also living with them is their mother Connie (Valerie Richards) , who is depressed and withdrawn as they scrape by with whatever they live with.  Even as they get help from their neighbor Sonya (Shelley Waggener) who often takes care of their horse.  When a sheriff (Garrett Dillahunt) arrives to reveal to Ree that her father Jeesup has skipped bail and used the house as collateral.  Ree realizes that she needs to find him or else her family will be homeless.

Ree asks for help including her friend Gail (Lauren Sweetser), a friend of her dad’s name Little Arthur (Kevin Breznahan), and a woman named Victoria (Cinnamon Schultz).  Victoria is the girlfriend of Ree’s uncle Teardrop (John Hawkes) who doesn’t know where his brother is as he suggests to not dwell on finding Jeesup.  After a suggestion from Little Arthur’s girlfriend Megan (Casey MacLaren), Ree walks to meet with Thump Milton (Ronnie Hall) whom she fears.  She goes to his place to meet Merab (Dale Dickey) who says that Thump is too busy and suggests to forget about what is happening.  Yet, Sonya’s boyfriend Blond Milton (William White) would reveal news about what might’ve happened to Jeesup as Ree decides to continue the search.

With Gail’s help, she and Ree meet up with Jeesup’s old girlfriend April (Sheryl Lee) who saw Jeesup two months ago as she realized that he’s been acting stranger than usual.  Realizing that her family home is in danger and a bails bondsman (Tate Taylor), she tries to have a meeting with Thump only to get herself in even greater danger.  Teardrop comes by to settle things as he reveals what his brother was up to as he decides to help her.  With days away from losing the house, Ree tries to find ways to get money while Teardrop investigates the whereabouts of his brother.  What they find is more shocking as well as the motive for the dark underworld Jessup had been involved with.

The film is a coming-of-age tale of sorts since it’s about a 17-year old girl trying to save her family’s home where she would discover a dark underworld that her father had been involved in.  Yet, it’s more about the journey where Ree is someone already forced to grow up and act like an adult as she lives quite poorly with two young siblings to raise.  Yet, she has all of the things a 17-year old wants including a life at high school.  Still, she is devoted to her family that needs her as she takes care of her mentally-ill mother and her two young siblings.  When she’s faced of losing that family and sense of security, she has to go into this treacherous adventure.

While she would get help from various people, there are two people who would warn her about the world she’s about to enter.  One is her uncle Teardrop, a meth-head who is hostile yet doesn’t want Ree to enter this treacherous world as he knows something that he doesn’t want her to know.  The character of Teardrop is an anti-hero of sorts who doesn’t want to get into any trouble but is reluctant about helping out his niece since she’s the closest thing to family that he has.  The other character Ree encounters is Merab, an enforcer who works for an underworld boss who is intimidating and fierce as she doesn’t want Ree to find out about anything.

The film’s screenplay succeeds in not just bringing life to the characters that Ree meets but also her surroundings in the Ozarks Mountains.  Yet, it’s Debra Granik’s direction that really brings a haunting yet hypnotic quality to the film.  Shot on locations in the Ozarks Mountains in Missouri, there is a very realistic quality to the film where there’s very little sunlight in the film as the weather is mostly gray.  Yet, it works to bring a look that feels real as if someone is at those mountains.  More importantly, Granik’s direction plays things very quietly while always having the camera on the characters in intimate and sparse moments.

For the film’s more intense, dramatic moments, Granik definitely aims for suspense by having the camera follow the action.  Notably a scene where Ree tries to follow Thump Milton at a cattle ranch and call out his name.  Even as it would lead to a violent scene where Ree would encounter Milton and his gang including the vicious Merab.  Every scene including a meeting between Ree and an army recruiter (Russell Schalk) has something to do with the story.  Overall, Granik’s direction is superb for her eerie compositions and gritty approach to storytelling.

Cinematographer Michael McDonough does a fabulous job with the film‘s cinematography with its realistic yet wonderful look for many of the film‘s exterior scenes.  Even at night where the darkness feels real and adds suspense to the film including a chilling scene at the lake.  Most of the interiors are very intimate in its lighting while the camera is mostly steady with a few hand-held shots as McDonough’s work is wonderful to watch. 

Editor Affonso Goncalves does an excellent job with the film’s editing by presenting it in a straightforward manner while maintaining a leisured pace for the film.  Even in creating fast-paced cuts and rhythms for the more suspenseful scenes of the film.  Production designer Mark White and set decorator Rebecca Brown do fantastic work with the decayed, messy look of the home Ree and her family lives in along with the surroundings of the other characters filled with decayed trailer parks and broken down cars.  Even as it adds a real sense of authenticity to what it really looks like in the world of the rural South.  Costume designer Rebecca Hofherr does a very good job with the film’s costumes as it plays to the realistic tone with characters wearing flannel and other winter-like clothing.

Sound editor Damian Volpe does a superb job with the film‘s sound in capturing the eerie atmosphere of the Ozarks from the winds and lakes nearby to the interior places such as the cattle halls and bars that the characters interact in.  The film’s score by Dickon Hinchliffe is definitely one of the film’s technical highlights as it plays to haunting tone of the film with sparse, ambient-like pieces driven by guitars and keyboards.  Even as the rest of the film’s music is a mixture of folk and traditional music.

Casting by Kerry Barden and Paul Schnee is phenomenal as many of the people in the film are non-actors which adds authenticity to the characters the people play.  Among the notable small performances include Cody Brown as Gail’s husband Floyd, Russell Schalk as an army recruiter, Beth Domann and Charlotte Jeane Lucas as a couple of Merab’s acquaintances, Tate Taylor as a no-nonsense bails bondsman, Kevin Breznahan as a fellow meth-head named Little Arthur, Casey MacLaren as Little Arthur’s girlfriend as Megan, William White as Ree’s neighbor Blond Floyd, and Ronnie Hall as crime boss Thump Milton.  Other notable small roles include Sheryl Lee as an ex-girlfriend of Ree’s father, Valerie Richards as Ree’s depressed, mute mother, Lauren Sweester as Ree’s friend Gail, Cinnamon Schultz as Teardrop’s girlfriend Victoria, and Shelley Waggener as sympathetic neighbor Sonya.

Garrett Dillahunt is very good as the local sheriff who reminds Ree of what she’s facing as he is also a man trying to do good though has issues with Teardrop during a showdown between the two.  Isaiah Stone and Ashlee Thompson are excellent in their respective roles as Sonny and Ashlee, the two young siblings of Ree who are aware of what is going on as they help her out in hunting food and such.  Dale Dickey is amazing as Merab, Thump Milton’s enforcer who is an intimidating presence in look and in performance.  Dickey brings a chilling and forceful performance as a woman no one wants to mess with as she is also someone who doesn’t want a young girl like Ree to get into the dark underworld she surrounds herself with.

John Hawkes is superb as Teardrop, Ree’s meth-head uncle who is a hostile man not wanting to get Ree into the dark underworld of drugs.  Yet, when he realizes that his brother is missing and Ree needs his help.  He becomes an unlikely sympathetic figure despite his flaws as Hawkes plays the character with an uneasy yet quiet performance as a man haunted by his own demons as wants to know the truth about his brother’s disappearance.  Finally, there’s Jennifer Lawrence in what is a definitely breakthrough role as Ree Dolly.  Lawrence’s performance is truly outstanding in the way she plays a young girl beyond her years as she is also someone who acts like a mother to her young siblings while determined to find out what happened to her dad.  It’s a very grounded role that has a young woman wanting to find out the truth, even if it puts her in danger as Lawrence steps up to the play by maintaining a calm approach to her character.  It’s definitely one of the year’s best performances.

Winter’s Bone is a phenomenal film from Debra Granik that feature a great performance from Jennifer Lawrence.  Along with wonderful supporting roles from John Hawkes and Dale Dickey, it’s a film that truly solidifies all that is good with no-holds-barred, raw, and compelling American indie cinema.  Even as it gives a director like Debra Granik a chance to be profiled more as she is definitely a true visionary.  Audiences wanting a thriller or suspense film with lots of realism will find it in a film like this as it doesn’t play to any rules while creating characters that are truly engaging.  In the end, Winter’s Bone is an exhilarating and captivating film from Debra Granik and company.

Debra Granik Films: Down to the Bone - (Stray Dog (2014 film)) - Leave No Trace

© thevoid99 2011