Ad Astra

Directed by James Gray and written by Gray and Ethan Gross, Ad Astra is the story of an astronaut who travels to space to find his long-lost father who is believed to be found but conducting dangerous experiments that would threaten the universe. The film is a space adventure drama that follows a man whose devotion to his work forces him to deal with his father’s absence as he embarks on a journey to find his father and figure what he’s doing. Starring Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Ruth Negga, Liv Tyler, and Donald Sutherland. Ad Astra is an astonishing yet riveting film from James Gray.

A series of power surges is threatening the universe as an astronaut is tasked to travel to space all the way to Neptune where the surge is coming from as it is believed that the astronaut’s father is conducting strange experiments on a space station near Neptune. That is the film’s premise as it more plays into this father-son relationship where the son is dealing with trying to live under the shadow of his father’s legacy despite being his own man yet bears some issues as it relates to his father abandoning him and his mother many years ago. The film’s screenplay by James Gray and Ethan Gross is told mainly through astronaut in Major Roy McBride (Brad Pitt) who is a man devoted to his work yet it would cost him his marriage to Eve (Liv Tyler). During a routine repair job at a large space antenna, a power surge emerges and does damage to the antenna with McBride being able to survive as he’s asked by military personnel to go to Neptune where it is believed his father Dr. H. Clifford McBride (Tommy Lee Jones) is alive having been presumed lost during a mission known as the Lima project.

The Lima project that was led by Dr. McBride was meant to see if there’s any form of intelligence life outside of the solar system but something happened and Dr. McBride and his crew hadn’t been heard since until these power surges have emerged prompting Roy to take the mission. Much of the first act involves Roy learning about his father while taking on numerous psychological evaluations to see if he’s capable of carrying on this classified mission where he’s joined by his father’s old friend in Colonel Pruitt (Donald Sutherland) to the moon where they would get a ride to Mars yet they would encounter some trouble involving space pirates with Roy going on the trip via another crew as things become more troubling due to the surge. Arriving on Mars where he meets facility director Helen Lantos (Ruth Negga) who reveals that she met Dr. McBride as a child as her parents were part of his crew and they never returned as well. Yet, Roy becomes more troubled by more psychological evaluations by people on Mars prompting him to sneak on board a rocket to confront his father by himself.

Gray’s direction is definitely ambitious not just in scope and scale but also in its themes of existence and of the universe itself. Set in the near future and shot on location in Santa Clarita, California and on studio soundstages, Gray maintains some intimacy for scenes on Earth that include flashbacks of McBride’s life with Eve but also the disconnect they have as it relates to McBride’s devotion to his work. Through the usage of close-ups and medium shots, Gray does play into the emotional disconnect that McBride carries yet the mission he has to embark on forces him to become emotional where it would take a psychological toll on him eventually once he goes into space. The scenes set in outer space are quite vast with the usage of wide shots that captures the scale of McBride’s journey towards Mars and then Neptune. Notably as the world that Gray creates from the colony on the moon that looks a bit like a mall in its interiors while the underground facility on Mars is far more mysterious including the scene of McBride trying to sneak onto the rocket to Neptune.

Gray’s direction also has this air of mystery during its second act as it relates to the psychological interviews that McBride is doing as well as his attempts to contact his father. It’s a moment in the film that showcases McBride’s own revelations into his mission and what some are not telling him as there are only a few he can really trust. The film’s third act has Gray delve more into elements of surrealism but also isolation into the journey as McBride is forced to deal with himself as the film does bear a lot of visual and thematic elements that relate to other films yet Gray goes for something more emotional. The meeting between McBride and his father is emotional as it does play into their own disconnect with other people but also the fallacies of their own exploration although Dr. McBride does manage to find things that would be important to the universe. In the end, Gray crafts an intoxicating yet haunting film about an astronaut traveling through space to find his long-lost father.

Cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema does incredible work with the film’s cinematographer as it is a massive highlight of the film with its usage of low-key filters for some of the interiors and colorful lighting including some scenes on Mars and in some of the spaceships as well as emphasizing on a natural look for some of the exteriors and interiors on Earth as the photography also include additional work from Caleb Deschanel. Editors John Axelrad and Lee Haugen do brilliant work with the editing as it help play into some of the dramatic suspense while being straightforward in some parts while creating some stylish montages in scenes that play into the flashbacks and what McBride is dealing with in his journey. Production designer Kevin Thompson, with set decorator Karen O’Hara and supervising art director Christa Munro, does amazing work with the look of some of the spaceship interiors as well as some of the exteriors of the places and facilities on the moon and on Mars. Costume designer Albert Wolsky does terrific work with the costumes from the military uniforms some of the characters wear on Earth to the spacesuits that astronauts wear.

Hair/makeup designer Nana Fischer does nice work with the look of Dr. McBride when he’s unveiled for the film’s climax along with the beard that McBride grows during his journey. Visual effects supervisor Allen Maris does fantastic work with the visual effects as it play into elements of realism but also in the way some of the scenes in space are presented along with some chilling scenes inside a space station involving baboons. Sound designers Douglas Murray and Gary Rydstrom do superb work with the sound as it play into the sounds of spaceships heard from the insides as well as the sounds of rockets and other gadgets including the low-key sound of the power surges. The film’s music by Max Richter is phenomenal for its ambient-based score that has elements of orchestral bombast and serene synthesizers while music supervisors George Drakoulias and Randall Poster provide additional music from Lorne Balfe and Steffen Thum that add to the serene yet mysterious tone of the film.

The casting by Douglas Aibel is wonderful as it feature some notable small roles from Sean Blakemore as McBride’s head escort at the moon, Donnie Kershawarz as a ship leader for McBride’s trip to Mars, Loren Dean as the Mars’ ship second-in-command, Kimberly Elise and Bobby Nish as a couple of astronauts for the Mars ship, LisaGay Hamilton and John Finn as a couple of military officials briefing McBride about the situation, Natasha Lyonne as a customs officer on Mars, and John Ortiz as General Rivas who briefs McBride about his father and the Lima project. Liv Tyler is terrific in her small role as McBride’s ex-wife Eve as someone who feels pushed away from her husband while she would get contact from him about his mission as she deals with his emotional troubles. Donald Sutherland is superb as Colonel Pruitt as an old friend of Dr. McBride who accompanies McBride to the moon as he admits to having issues with his father while wanting to help McBride reach his destination.

Ruth Negga is excellent as Helen Lantos as facility director at a base on Mars who reveals some things to McBride about his father as well as what happened to her parents as she would help McBride to board the ship to Neptune knowing that there are many who are trying to stop him from being involved. Tommy Lee Jones is incredible as Dr. H. Clifford McBride as a revered astronaut who led the Lima project that was meant to be something big only for things to go wrong where Jones brings a mysterious quality to his character as someone who is believed to have gone insane. Finally, there’s Brad Pitt in a sensational performance as Major Roy McBride as an astronaut who is tasked to find his long-lost father as he deals with the severity of the mission as it’s a performance where Pitt is restrained for much of the film as he doesn’t do anything to emote until later on as he plays into the flaws of his character as it is one of Pitt’s finest performances.

Ad Astra is a tremendous film from James Gray that feature great performances from Brad Pitt and Tommy Lee Jones. Along with its ensemble cast, stunning visuals, immense production design, evocative music score, and themes of exploration and isolation. It’s a film that play into a man’s journey to find his long-lost father while coping with his own faults and the sins of his father that he would have to carry. In the end, Ad Astra is a spectacular film from James Gray.

James Gray Films: Little Odessa - The Yards - We Own the Night - Two Lovers - The Immigrant (2013 film) - The Lost City of Z - The Auteurs #67: James Gray

© thevoid99 2019

Eyes of Laura Mars

Directed by Irvin Kershner and screenplay by John Carpenter and David Zelag Goodman from a story by John Carpenter, Eyes of Laura Mars is the story of a fashion photographer who is known for shooting violent images starts to see things through the eyes of a killer. The film is a suspense-thriller that play into the mind of a woman who is dealing with what she is seeing as her own life starts to unravel. Starring Faye Dunaway, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Dourif, Raul Julia, Michael Tucker, and Rene Auberjonois. Eyes of Laura Mars is a thrilling but underwhelming film from Irvin Kershner.

A controversial yet revered fashion photographer known for creating macabre images in her work finds herself seeing murders happening through the eyes of a killer who are targeting those that she knows. With the help of a detective, she would try and find the killer while falling for the man who is protecting her. It’s a premise that is intriguing and simple yet it would fall apart due to its screenplay as would play into the things that the titular character (Faye Dunaway) would see as there are suspects on who could be the killer. The script unfortunately doesn’t do enough to maintain that intrigue where the audience can get an idea on who it might be while there is also this love story between Laura Mars and the detective Lieutenant John Neville (Tommy Lee Jones) that occurs in the middle of the film that feels tacked on and brings a lot of ideas about who is killing her as he is first introduced at one of her galleries criticizing her work to her unaware of who she is.

Irvin Kershner’s direction does have its moments in terms of the visuals and establishing the locations into what Laura sees through her strange psychic visions. Shot on location in New York City and parts of New Jersey, Kershner’s direction does have some unique compositions such as the photoshoots that Laura creates with some unique wide and medium shots along with the usage of close-ups to play into the visions that she sees. There are some visual tricks that Kershner would use to play into Laura’s visions that are blurry as it plays from the point-of-view of the killer yet it becomes repetitive as the story progresses. The film’s screenplay definitely hinders Kershner’s approach to the suspense as it includes a third act where Lt. Neville finds a suspect but had also fallen for Laura which complicates things as it tries to be thrilling but it doesn’t do enough to be ambiguous. Even in the reveal where it doesn’t have the impact it should’ve had as it is over-the-top and ridiculous that includes a monologue that reveals too much. Overall, Kershner crafts a film that starts off well only to fumble big time in its second half in a half-baked film about a woman who sees murders through the eyes of a killer.

Cinematographer Victor J. Kemper does excellent work with the cinematography to play into some of the visuals in the way the gallery looks along with some of the exteriors for scenes set in the day and night. Editor Michael Kahn does nice work with the editing as it does have bits of style to play into the suspense with its cuts of what Laura sees from the killer’s point of view. Production designer Gene Callahan, with set decorator John Godfrey and art director Robert Gundlach, does fantastic work with the look of the gallery as well as Laura’s home and the studio where she does some of her photo shoots.

Costume designer Theoni V. Alderedge does brilliant work with the costumes in the clothes that Laura wears along with the models and her friends wear. Sound editor Charles L. Campbell does terrific work with the sound as it does play into the atmosphere of the suspense including scenes in some of the film’s locations. The film’s music by Artie Kane is good for its orchestral score that play into the film’s suspense and drama while music supervisor Charles Koppelman provides a fun soundtrack that is filled with some disco music but also a lame and overwrought love ballad sung by Barbra Streisand.

The film’s superb cast include some notable small roles and appearances from Michael Tucker as an associate of Mars in Bert, Lisa Taylor and Darlanne Fluegel as a couple of models of Mars in their respective roles as Michelle and Lulu, Meg Mundy as a friend of Mars in Doris Spenser, Rose Gregorio as another friend of Mars in Elaine, and Frank Adonis as a detective who helps Lt. Neville in the case in Sal Volpe. Raul Julia is terrific in a brief yet memorable performance as Mars’ ex-husband Michael Reisler as a man who is an initial suspect of the murders though he had been dating one of Mars’ friends and is dealing with failure of his work as a writer. Rene Auberjonois is fantastic as the flamboyant Donald Phelps as a friend of Mars who also handles her business as well as try to figure out how to deal with the presence of the killer.

Brad Dourif is superb as Tommy as Mars’ driver who definitely has the look of being a suspect as he is someone that doesn’t like Phelps while always carrying a knife as he has the many obvious traits in being the killer. Tommy Lee Jones is pretty good in the film whenever he’s being charming and cunning in the role of the Lt. John Neville yet it is the moments where Neville and Mars fall for each other that doesn’t work as Jones is just miscast as the romantic. Finally, there’s Faye Dunaway in an excellent performance as the titular character as it’s a performance that has Dunaway display the anguish and fear of what she’s seeing though there’s moments that the script doesn’t do her any favors where she doesn’t do enough to break out of the conventions of suspense while she and Jones don’t really have any chemistry in the romantic scenes.

Despite its ensemble cast, some gorgeous visuals, and an intriguing premise, Eyes of Laura Mars is a film that starts off well only to falter by its conventions in the genre and not enough trust into unveiling the killer in the end. Even as its attempt to be this giallo-inspired film from someone like John Carpenter who understands the genre only to have his script play into cheap scares and a stupid ending. In the end, Eyes of Laura Mars is just a hackneyed and disappointing film from Irvin Kershner.

© thevoid99 2018

Batman Forever

Based on the DC Comics by Bob Kane, Batman Forever is the story of Batman facing new foes as he also deals with his own traumas and identity while taking in a young man who would become his new partner in Robin. Directed by Joel Schumacher with a screenplay by Akiva Goldsman, Lee Batchler, and Janet Scott-Batchler from a story by the Batchlers, the film is the third film of the franchise that began with the 1989 film as Val Kilmer plays the role of the Caped Crusader and Bruce Wayne with Chris O’Donnell in the role of Dick Grayson/Robin while the villains in Harvey “Two-Face” Dent and Edward Nygma/the Riddler are respectively played by Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carrey. Also starring Nicole Kidman, Pat Hingle, Drew Barrymore, Debi Mazar, and Michael Gough. Batman Forever is an entertaining but messy film from Joel Schumacher.

The film is about Batman facing two new villains as he tries to cope his role as Bruce Wayne and Batman where he also deals with his parents’ death just as a young man named Dick Grayson just lost his parents. While Batman deals with the maniacal Harvey “Two-Face” Dent, who was Gotham’s district attorney until an incident left the left-part of his face scarred as Batman was blamed for it, and a former Wayne Enterprise employee in Edward Nygma who becomes the Riddler. Adding to Wayne’s complicated life is the presence of a psychiatrist Dr. Chase Meridian (Nicole Kidman) who is obsessed with Batman as Wayne goes to her over his own identity issues. In taking the young Grayson, Wayne eventually realizes that he’ll need Grayson to stop Two-Face and the Riddler as Grayson would become Batman’s new sidekick Robin.

The film’s screenplay does create some nice reference to the origin stories of Robin, Two-Face, and the Riddler as they are interesting characters. Yet, the script is much-more lighthearted in its approach to action by infusing some humor into the film as it relates to the Riddler who creates an invention that would extract information from other people’s minds as he would be the one to discover Wayne’s secrets. They’re among some of the elements of the film’s script that works yet there’s some things that don’t work as the characterization of Dr. Meridian is she is this woman whose obsession for Batman makes her somewhat unprofessional as a psychiatrist. Plus, she becomes this damsel-in-distress later on as the writing doesn’t really give her more to do while some of the re-hashing of Bruce Wayne’s past is definitely uninspiring since it’s stuff that audiences already know.

Joel Schumacher’s direction does have some nice moments as the presentation of the film is far more colorful than its predecessors that were helmed by Tim Burton. Even as Schumacher was able to keep things lively in some of the film’s humor and action sequences with some dazzling compositions and moments that are very entertaining. Yet, there’s some moments in Schumacher’s direction that doesn’t work as there is a bit of cheese in some of the dialogue and action sequences where it’s clear that Schumacher wants to create something that is fun but there’s things that feels off since Batman is really a very dark character. One aspect of the direction that is very annoying are the slanted camera angles which are overdone as it makes not sense to some of the visuals in the film. While the film does have an amazing climax, it does get over-the-top at times where it would play into Batman finally accepting his two identities though some of the presentation comes off as very silly. Overall, Schumacher crafts an exciting but dizzying film about Batman and Robin fighting Two-Face and the Riddler.

Cinematographer Stephen Goldblatt does nice work with some of the film‘s extravagant lighting for the look of Gotham as well as creating some shadows and lighting schemes to play into some of the darker moments of the film. Editors Dennis Virkler and Mark Stevens do terrific work with the editing with its use of flashback montages and rhythmic cuts for some of the film‘s action scenes. Production designer Barbara Ling, with art directors Christopher Burian-Mohr and Joseph P. Lucky and set decorator Cricket Rowland, does excellent work with the set pieces from the look of Gotham as well as the secret lair of Two-Face. Costume designers Bob Ringwood and Ingrid Ferrin do some good work with the clothes that Two-Face and the Riddler wear though the look of the Batsuit with nipples and codpieces are just ridiculously bad.

Special makeup designer Rick Baker does amazing work with the look of Two-Face where his left face is badly scarred to play into his unstable personality. Visual effects supervisors Andrew Adamson, Eric Durst, Boyd Shermis, and David Stump do some wonderful work with the miniatures of Gotham and some of the CGI look in some of its action sequences. Sound editors John Levesque and Bruce Stambler, along with sound designers Frank Kniest and Roland N. Thai, do some superb work with the sound from the way Riddler‘s machine extracts information from other people‘s minds to the layering of sounds in the action scenes. The film’s music by Elliot Goldenthal is pretty decent for its orchestral bombast with some triumphant moments but also some humorous pieces while music supervisor Jolene Cherry brings in an eclectic soundtrack that features song by the Flaming Lips, U2, the Offspring, Brandy, and Seal.

The casting by Mali Finn is brilliant for the ensemble that is created as it features some notable appearances from Don “The Dragon” Wilson as a gang leader Grayson encounters, Jon Faverau as a Wayne Enterprise assistant, Rene Auberjonois as the doctor from Arkham Asylum, Joe Grifasi as a bank security guard that Batman saves early in the film, and Ed Begley Jr. as Nygma’s boss who is later killed by Nygma. One small role that isn’t very good is the Gossip Gertie character performed by Bob Kane’s wife Elizabeth Sanders as it’s a very annoying character that serves no purpose to the film. Michael Gough and Pat Hingle are terrific in their respective roles as Alfred Pennyworth and Commissioner Gordon as Gough serves as a father-figure to Grayson while Hingle has Gordon be the man who would bring Grayson to Bruce Wayne.

Drew Barrymore and Debi Mazar are both fun to watch in their respective roles as Two-Face’s assistants Sugar and Spice. Nicole Kidman is alright as Dr. Meridian Chase as this woman who has some charm and sexiness but the writing doesn’t really do any favors for Kidman as her character turns out to be very obsessed with Batman. Chris O’Donnell is excellent as Dick Grayson/Robin as a lost young man wanting vengeance on Two-Face while asking for help from Batman. Tommy Lee Jones is fantastic as Two-Face as this maniacal man who uses a coin to make decisions while wanting to kill Batman at any cost.

Jim Carrey is great as the Riddler as this former Waynes Enterprise employee who wants to get rid of Batman for not accepting his invention and become even richer than Batman as Carrey is just fun to watch. Finally, there’s Val Kilmer in a pretty good performance as Bruce Wayne/Batman as Kilmer does maintain that brooding persona of Batman but doesn’t really make Wayne very interesting while some of the characterization of Batman is off as it includes a shot of Batman smiling. Batman is not supposed to smile.

Batman Forever is a solid film from Joel Schumacher. Thanks to the lively performances of Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones as the villains, it’s a film that is very entertaining but loses a lot of the dark aspects of the Batman character in favor of being more accessible to a younger audience. Especially as Schumacher’s colorful presentation is a bit overwhelming at times where it allows the film and Batman to lose its edge. In the end, Batman Forever is a good but troubling film from Joel Schumacher.

Batman Films: (Batman (1966 film)) - Batman (1989 film) - Batman Returns - Batman & Robin - Batman Begins - The Dark Knight - The Dark Knight Rises - Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - The Lego Batman Movie - The Batman (2022 film)

© thevoid99 2014

Natural Born Killers

Directed by Oliver Stone, Natural Born Killers is the story of a two lovers who become mass murderers as they are glorified by the mass media as a TV show host hopes to exploit them during their prison stay. Screenplay from Stone, Dave Veloz, and Richard Rutowski from an original story by Quentin Tarantino, the film is an exploration into the world of violence showcased through a media hungry for violence in a culture obsessed with serial killers and mass murders. Starring Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Robert Downey Jr., Tom Sizemore, and Tommy Lee Jones. Natural Born Killers is an insane yet exhilarating film from Oliver Stone.

Serial killers Mickey and Mallory Knox (Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis) are on a trip around the American Southwest as they’re on a killing spree. Spurred by traumatic childhood events and living in troubled homes, the two meet one day as they fall in love and later kill Mallory’s parents. Following them in their road of terror is TV journalist Wayne Gale whose TV show American Maniacs has made them cult heroes. Also after them is a psychopathic detective named Jack Scagnetti (Tom Sizemore) who has been obsessed with Mallory. While lost in the desert, Mickey and Mallory meet up with a Navajo Indian named Warren Red Cloud (Russell Means) and his grandson (Jeremiah Bitsui) who is aware of the demons the two carries.

During a ceremony where Mickey and Mallory are asleep, Mickey has a nightmare where he wakes up and accidentally kills Red Cloud. Guilty over what happened and bitten by snakes, Mickey and Mallory try to get some snakebite antidote where they’re suddenly captured by Scagnetti and police officers as it’s captured by a Japanese news crew. One year later, Mickey and Mallory at Batonga Penitentiary run by Warden Dwight McClusky (Tommy Lee Jones) who had put them in different cells as they’re both set to be transferred to a mental hospital. Wayne Gale is also at the prison to set up a TV interview with Mickey for his show while McClusky and Scagnetti are conspiring to kill them during the transfer.

On the night of Wayne Gale’s interview with Mickey Knox where Mickey reveals his reasons for being a killer as a riot is incited and all hell breaks loose. Gale and his crew capture the riots as Mickey hopes to retrieve Mallory who is being visited by Scagnetti as lots of mayhem occur. With McClusky trying to subdue control, it all leads to a showdown between Mickey, Mallory, and Wayne Gale against McClusky and his guards as it’s presented live on TV.

The film is essentially the story of a young couple who become serial killers as they’re being exploited by a TV journalist who wants to give the public an appetite for chaos and mayhem. Eventually, things come to ahead in prison where the couple deal with a psychotic detective, a crazed warden, and the TV journalist as it leads to all sorts of things in a prison riot. The film is really more of an exploration into how the media is willing to exploit death just for the sake of ratings with no sense of remorse for anyone including the killers themselves. It is a satirical reflection of what was happening in the 1990s when sensational TV became part of the norm as the public become obsessed with serial killers and courtroom television.

The screenplay by Oliver Stone, Dave Veloz, and Richard Rutowski is essentially multi-layered as it doesn’t exactly play to a conventional narrative structure. The film opens with Mickey and Mallory at a diner and later killing a few people in the process just to establish what kind of people they are. While they maybe killers who are deeply in love with each other, they do have some sense of compassion and will always leave someone alive to tell the story. Plus, they’re people who come from very unhappy homes as Mickey is abused by his father and watched his father die. Mallory comes from a family where her father (Rodney Dangerfield) molests her and a mother (Edie McClurg) who doesn’t really do anything. Both Mickey and Mallory kill as they’re both trying to deal with ill of the world as they’re also carrying demons around them.

The moment they meet Warren Red Cloud becomes a key plot point where they meet someone who knows what they’re about as he offers them shelter and a chance to be free from their demons but an accident will have them carry the guilt of killing someone who was really a good person. This moment would become the catalyst for their downfall as the film is sort of told in a non-linear fashion where the reports about their killings are shown through Wayne Gale’s TV show. Wayne Gale is a very important character to the film as he’s a man that represents the media as a whole. Here is someone who is willing to exploit the world of serial killing on his TV show as he finds Mickey and Mallory Knox as the perfect patsies for what he needs in his quest for big ratings. Gale is a character that is slightly over-the-top as he definitely becomes a lot crazier in the third act.

Then there’s characters like Jack Scagnetti and Dwight McClusky who are men who definitely despise serial killers. Scagnetti is a detective whose mother was killed by Charles Whitman as he has a very sick obsession towards Mallory. McClusky is a man that simply likes to maintain control in his prison and doesn’t really care who he has in his prison as he treats them like animals with no sense of remorse or compassion. For Mickey and Mallory, McClusky and Scagnetti are just people that represent true evil while Wayne Gale is also another manifestation of evil in something that isn’t even manmade.

Stone’s direction is definitely hyper-stylized and extravagant as he goes all-out with the film. The overall presentation isn’t meant to be realistic but rather surrealistic as it features scenes with film screen backdrops to create a road movie of sorts that is far removed from reality. There’s also lots of moments in locations set in Southwest America where they are in a real world but it feels very abstract as Stone would often create moments where the camera work is off and he puts in strange visual tricks. The sequence where Mickey meets Mallory for the first time is presented in a farcical TV sitcom as it would also include bits of strange hand-drawn animated sequences. Since the film is also a satire on the media’s sensational reporting on killing, Stone would create scenes that is presented in a documentary-like fashion where TV is king as people often celebrate the antics of Mickey and Mallory.

While Stone does manage to keep things a bit straightforward in the third act, he definitely goes all-out and more for the film’s climatic riot. Particularly as he aims for a cinema verite style where he uses TV cameras and such to capture what is going on. The violence throughout the film is graphic and unsettling (much more so in its unrated director’s cut) as Stone amps it up in the riot where there’s more people killed and the violence is almost uncontrollable. The film’s ending definitely reveals how much the world was obsessed with violence and chaos as it’s a moment where Stone taking a shot at the exploitation of violence. Overall, Stone creates a truly dazzling yet provocative film that explores the world of media and its fascination with serial killers.

Cinematographer Robert Richardson does incredible work with the cinematography where he infuses all sorts of visual styles from grainy camera work, flashy lighting schemes, black-and-white, and other array of lighting styles to play up the surreal world that Stone wanted. Editors Hank Corwin and Brian Berdan do amazing work with the editing by going into an array of various cutting styles from jump-cuts, dissolves, and other methods to maintain something that is unconventional in its approach to pacing. Production designer Victor Kempster, along with art directors Alan Tomkins and Margery Zweizig and set decorator Merideth Boswell, does brilliant work with the sets from the backdrops that are created to some of the sets such as the supermarket that Mickey and Mallory go to find some snake antidote.

Costume designer Richard Hornhung does terrific work with the costumes from the stylish clothes that Mickey and Mallory wear in their road trip to the bloody convict suits they wear during the riot. Sound editors Wylie Stateman and Michael D. Wilhoit, along with sound designers Scott Michael Gershin and David Kneupper, do superb work with the sound to capture the chaos of the prison as well as the moments in the locations the characters encounter.

Music supervisor Budd Carr creates a truly dazzling music soundtrack in collaboration with its producer Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails. Along with some music from NIN including the song Burn, the soundtrack features an array of music from Leonard Cohen, L7, Patti Smith, Jane’s Addiction, Dr. Dre, Tha Dogg Pound, Patsy Cline, Bob Dylan, Cowboy Junkies, Duane Eddy, Peter Gabriel and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Lard, and other artists in a collage of pieces. Additional contributions that isn’t in the album soundtrack includes Marilyn Manson, Rage Against the Machine, the Specials, the Shangri-Las, and a few others as it’s definitely one of the great film soundtracks of the 1990s.

The casting by Risa Bramon Garcia, Billy Hopkins, and Heidi Levitt is fantastic for the ensemble that is created. In some small but notable appearances, there’s Adrien Brody as a cameraman, Arliss Howard as a mysterious convict, James Gammon as a redneck at the diner, Mark Harmon and Corey Everson as TV actors playing Mickey and Mallory, O-Lan Jones as a diner waitress, Steven Wright as a criminal psychiatrist that Gale interviews, and Balthazar Getty as a gas station attendant who has sex with Mallory. Other noteworthy small roles include Pruitt Taylor Vince, Joe Grifasi, and Louis Lombardi as prison guards, Sean Stone as Mallory’s little brother Kevin, Jeremiah Bitsui as the Indian’s grandson, Edie McClurg as Mallory’s mother, and Rodney Dangerfield in a shocking performance as Mallory’s abusive father.

Russell Means is excellent in a small but crucial role as the Navajo Indian that Mickey and Mallory meet who would become the one person that they see is the personification of everything that is good. Tom Sizemore is great as the psychotic detective Jack Scagnetti who has a sick obsession with killers as he hopes to become a legend in killing Mickey and Mallory. Tommy Lee Jones is superb as the cartoonish Warden Dwight McClusky where Jones brings an intensity to a madman who hates Mickey and Mallory where he tries to be this terrifying authority figure. Robert Downey Jr. is amazing as Wayne Gale where Downey sports an Australian accent as a man just hell-bent on getting the story of a lifetime where he gets more than he bargains for.

Finally, there’s the duo of Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis in their respective roles as Mickey and Mallory Knox. Harrelson provides a cool yet darkly-humor approach to his character as well as a charisma that is just intoxicating to watch. Lewis is more angelic in her persona but also far more aggressive as she too brings some humor to her character. Together, they make one hell of a combo as they radiate chemistry when they’re in love or when they’re fighting as they make Mickey and Mallory Knox some of the coolest characters on film.

Natural Born Killers is a sick, twisted, extravagant, and ugly film from Oliver Stone yet it’s a whole lot of fun to watch. Thanks to some amazing technical work, a kick-ass soundtrack, and outstanding performances from Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Robert Downey Jr., Tommy Lee Jones, and Tom Sizemore. It’s truly a film that really captures the insanity of 1990s-media obsession with murder. It’s also a film that isn’t for the faint of heart as well as something that shouldn’t be taken seriously. In the end, Natural Born Killers is a fucked-up yet sensational wild ride from Oliver Stone.

Oliver Stone Films: (Seizure) - (The Hand) - (Salvador) - (Platoon) - (Wall Street) - (Talk Radio) - (Born on the 4th of July) - (The Doors) - (JFK) - (Heaven & Earth) - (Nixon) - (U Turn) - (Any Given Sunday) - (Persona Non Grata) - (Comandante) - (Looking for Fidel) - (Alexander) - (World Trade Center) - (W.) - (South of the Border) - (Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps) - (Savages (2012 film)) - (Snowden)

Related: Natural Born Killers OST

© thevoid99 2012

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 5/15/08 w/ Additional Edits & Revisions.

Directed and starring Tommy Lee Jones, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada tells the story of an aging cowboy who discovers the body of his dead immigrant friend as he captures his killer and take him on a long, horseback journey from Texas to Mexico to bury the body. Written by Guillermo Arriaga, the writer of films like Amores Perros, 21 Grams, and Babel for director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu. The film is a part western, part-journey that is also inspired by the story of Don Quixote. Also starring Barry Pepper, Julio Cedello, Dwight Yoakam, January Jones, Melissa Leo, Vanessa Bauche, Cecilia Suarez, and Levon Helm. The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada is an enchanting yet haunting film from Tommy Lee Jones and company.

Herding goats near the Texas-Mexico border is a man named Melquiades Estrada (Julio Cedello) where he shoots at a coyote as the two gunshots are heard by a new border patrolman named Mike Norton (Barry Pepper) who shoots Estrada to death and later buries him. After Estrada's body is found by patrolmen, local sheriff Belmont (Dwight Yoakam) calls Pete Perkins (Tommy Lee Jones) to reveal that Estrada is found dead as Perkins asks Belmont who killed Estradas as he would recall the times he met Estrada where they became friends. Particularly when they out with a couple of women including Pete's married girlfriend Rachel (Melissa Leo) who is also having an affair with Belmont. Meanwhile, Mike Norton is dealing with his troubled marriage to Lou Ann (January Jones) who feels bored by her new surroundings despite finding a friend in Rachel where she went on a double-date with Pete and Melquiades some time ago. Mike's new job as a border patrolman has become troubled due his violent attitude towards Mexican where he becomes distant following Estrada's death. 

After Belmont buries Estrada at another place, Rachel reveals to Pete that Mike Norton is the one who killed Estrada. When Belmont refuses Pete's request to arrest Norton due to issues with the border patrol, Pete decides to take matters into his own hands by breaking into the Nortons' home trailer where he ties up Lou Ann and kidnaps Mike. Forcing Mike to dig Estrada's body, Pete decides to make a vow to bury his friend at his birth home of Jiminez, Mexico as he also takes Mike on a treacherous journey on horseback as an act of revenge. While Belmont decides to go after Pete, pete is at the other side of the mountains forcing Belmont to let the border patrol and its Captain Gomez (Mel Rodriguez) to handle things but they're unable to capture Pete and Mike. Back in Texas, Lou Ann makes a decision about her marriage as she reveals to Rachel what she will do. With the journey to Mexico where Pete and Mike later encounter a blind man (Levon Helm), Mike tries to escape where he gets bitten by a rattlesnake as he's later saved by a group of U.S. bound Mexicans led by Lucio (Ignacio Guadalupe) to a small town where Pete also arrives at the town. 

At the town, Mike is treated by a woman named Mariana (Vanessa Bauche) whose nose Mike had broken weeks ago while Pete makes a call to Rachel to come to Mexico and get married. Melancholia eventually seeps into both Pete and Mike as they continue towards their journey to Jiminez as many locals claim the place doesn't exist. Finally meeting a woman (Cecilia Suarez) Pete thinks is Melquiades' wife, Pete wonders if everything his friend had said is true or not as he and Mike try to find the place called Jiminez.

The film is essentially about a man vowing to keep a promise to a friend of his while seeking justice and honor in his death. The character of Pete Perkins is someone who is seeking companionship in his lonely life whether it's through a married woman like Rachel or his friend Melquiades Estrada. When Melquiades is taken away, he tries to seek justice by capturing a man as ignorant as Mike Norton. When Norton becomes a prisoner, he is being punished not just physically but also emotionally and mentally as he goes on his own personal journey about himself.

Director Tommy Lee Jones and writer Guillermo Arriaga create a unique structure to the film to the film. Especially with Arriaga's unique narrative style as he separates the film into four parts. The first half is told through flashbacks and present time back and forth about the first two burials of Melquiades Estrada and Perkins seeking justice. The second half of the film involves the journey and the people back in Texas that concludes with the third and final burial of Melquiades Estrada. The film also involves a melancholic tone as Perkins tries to deal with his own alienation following Estrada's death as he tries to take care of his body as its decaying while being eaten by ants and such. The theme of alienation is very prevalent not just in Perkins but also the supporting characters as they all deal with boredom in this little Texan town with Lou Ann couldn't cope with living in small town Texas despite her friendship with Rachel.

Jones' direction works to convey the tone of fantasy and reality with that ode to Man of La Mancha where Jones' character is Don Quixote and Mike Norton is Sancho Panza. The location in Texas is truly inspiring as Jones uses it to great heights from its mountains to its beautiful scenery of water and desert truly gives the film a worldly feel. Jones' approach to the ending might seem baffling to some audience but again, it's him delving into a kind of realism mixed in with fantasy relating to Perkins. Jones use of compositions, scenery, and themes to convey the film is truly magnificent as it shows that he has a great future in being a director.

Cinematographer Chris Menges does some amazing work in the use of exteriors from the skylines to the dark, moody nighttime scenes to convey the film's melancholic mood. The interiors are also wonderful from the blue-green look of the diner Rachel works at to the Mexican bar mixed in with red lights and blue that Perkins is in to call Rachel. Menges' cinematography is astonishing as is his shots of the Texan mountains and hills. Editor Roberto Silvi does an excellent job with the film's present-day/flashback cutting to give the film a nice, unique pacing that works to convey the film's first half while the second half is more straightforward and intense. Production designer Merideth Boswell and art director Jeff Knipp do an amazing job in creating the look of the homes and places that Perkins and Norton go into, notably a cantina that is filled with wonderful lights and such.

Costume designer Kathy Kiatta does a fantastic job in the look of the costumes from the men's clothing filled with belts, cowboy boots, and cowboy hats to the dresses of the women as well as casual gear that is filled with wonderful colors. Sound recordist Loic Gourbe and mixer Mark Weingarten do a wonderful job in capturing the atmosphere of each location shot as well as the sounds of gunshots and animals in the desert. The film's music by composer Marco Beltrami is amazing in its understated tone with the use of acoustic instruments that has an intensity in the guitars to convey a feel of the western. Beltrami's score also does well in the suspense and melancholia as it's another highlight of the film. The soundtrack mostly consists of country classics by Merle Haggard, Hank Williams Jr., Freddy Fender, Roger Miller, and Dwight Yoakam as well as some Mexican, ranchero music.

The film's cast assembled by Jeanne McCarthy is wonderfully superb with small performances from screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga as a cowboy whom Perkins and Norton run into, Rene Campero as a local Don who Perkins talks to if he knew Melquiades, Celia Suarez as a woman who Perkins thinks is Melquiades' wife, and Vanessa Bauche as Mariana, a woman whom Mike had broken her nose during an immigration chase who would later return the favor. Ignacio Guadalupe is good as Lucio, a Mexican who accompanies Perkins and Norton to town while befriending the old cowboy. Mel Rodriguez is also good as border patrol captain Gomez who tries to control Mike while doing his job to try and capture Perkins. Legendary drummer for the Band, Levon Helm is amazing as a blind man who takes Perkins and Norton for dinner and company as he asks them a favor that is morally wrong that neither are wanting to do.

Melissa Leo is excellent as Rachel, a married woman who has numerous affairs with both sheriff Belmont and Perkins as she tries to keep the young Lou Ann company while being confused in her affairs while January Jones is pretty good as the neglected and lost Lou Ann. Julio Cedello is great in his small role as Melquiades Estrada who is just a simple man that becomes the unwittingly victim of his own death while his body is being carried around in a treacherous journey.

Country singer Dwight Yoakam is excellent as the cantankerous Sheriff Belmont who has a real dislike towards Perkins while trying to maintain his role as sheriff only to find comfort in Rachel. Barry Pepper is brilliant in his role as Mike Norton, an angry, naive, ignorant man who has committed murder only to be dragged and tortured physically and emotionally into a journey as he tries to seek redemption and understanding. Pepper's performance is a real highlight as he endures many physical and mental challenges for his character while being a great foil for Jones.

Then there's Tommy Lee Jones in one of his finest performances yet. In his role as a laconic, melancholic rancher is just amazing to watch as Jones' understated, minimalist performance is shown a wide range of emotion and humor as he plays a man trying to make a promise. Jones also brings a wonderful presence to his character as if he is Don Quixote that makes his performance more worldly and grand as it's a great character for the actor to play.

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada is a truly superb film from Tommy Lee Jones and writer Guillermo Arriaga with a great cast led by Jones and Barry Pepper. With a wonderful supporting cast that includes Melissa Leo, Dwight Yoakam, and the late Levon Helm, it's a very unique and exotic film that plays into the world of the western and its theme of redemption. Fans of Jones' acting will no doubt consider this one of his finest work as well as be surprised by what he's able to do as a filmmaker. So in the end, for anyone that wants a mesmerizing western mixed in with fantasy, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada is the film to see.

(C) thevoid99 2012

Captain America: The First Avenger

Based on the Marvel comic by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, Captain America: The First Avenger is the story of how a young man named Steve Rogers became Captain America through an experiment as he helps Americans during World War II to fight one of Adolf Hitler’s evil henchmen. Directed by Joe Johnston and screenplay by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeeley, the film is an origin story about Captain America and his rise to power as he’s played by Chris Evans. Also starring Hayley Atwell, Hugo Weaving, Stanley Tucci, Dominic Cooper, Derek Luke, Neal McDonough, Sebastian Stan, Toby Jones, and Tommy Lee Jones. Captain America: The First Avenger is a stylish yet exhilarating film from Joe Johnston.

A Nazi officer named Johan Schmidt (Hugo Weaving) has arrived in a small Norwegian village with a group of soldiers to retrieve a mysterious tesseract that possesses unlimited power. Meanwhile, a young man named Steve Rogers has tried out to be in the military but is rejected due to his sickly physical appearances and other ailments. With his friend Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) accompanying to an exhibition hosted by famed inventor Howard Stark (Hugo Weaving), Steve sees another recruitment office where he gets the attention of Dr. Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) who admires Steve’s determination as he gets him enlisted. Despite Steve’s small appearance where Colonel Chester Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones), an act of self sacrifice does manage to impress British agent Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell).

After Erskine reveals to Steve about an experiment that he collaborated with Schmidt that went out of control due to Schmidt’s power, he reminds Steve that it’s about being a good man that matters. With Steve taking part of the experiment led by Erskine and Stark, the success becomes a surprising success only for one of Schmidt’s assassins (Richard Armitage) to take a formula where Steve, in his new powers, manages to stop him from taking the formula. Though Phillips remains unsure of Steve, U.S. Senator Brandt (Michael Brandon) has Steve play the role of a costumed hero named Captain America for a tour to sell war bonds. During a stop in Italy, Steve learns that his friend Bucky is captured by some men of Schmidt along with many POWs. With Phillips refusing to help in order to avoid taking a risk, Carter and Stark decided to aid Steve in the secret mission that turns out to be a major success.

Though the mission has Steve meeting Schmidt for the first time under his real face, he also learns what Schmidt is doing. With a team that includes Bucky, Dum Dum Dugan (Neal McDonough), Gabe Jones (Derek Luke), Japanese-American Jim Morita (Kenneth Choi), British soldier James Montgomery Falsworth (J.J. Feild), and French Resistance soldier Jacques Dernier (Bruno Ricci). Steve and his team manages to destroy Schmidt’s factories and bases as well as capturing his biochemist Arnim Zola (Toby Jones) who reluctantly reveals information to Phillips. Realizing what Schmidt will do with the power of the tesseract, Steve decides to go ahead to create a mission that will stop him from destroying the world.

The film is essentially an origin story of how Steve Rogers became Captain America through an experiment back in the 1940s during World War II. Yet, it’s a very compelling story since Steve Rogers is just this young guy who doesn’t have a lot of physical strength and probably the last guy anyone would want in an army. Yet, he just wants to help out and is willing to do anything for his country where he would impress some people and later become this symbol of American patriotism. Of course, he would have to face this Nazi officer who sports a red skull due to a botched experiment as he’s obsessed with the occult and power that would make him far more powerful that Hitler.

The screenplay that Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeeley does play to a certain formula that is expected in an origin story based on superheroes. What makes it different is the fact that Steve Rogers isn’t like a lot of the people who would become superheroes. He’s a guy with an idea about what a hero should be and is from an era that was about doing what is right for the country. When he gets the power to be super-strong and be able to do things better than most humans. He becomes more confident but is grounded by Erskine’s words that to be a true soldier is to just simply be a good person. That is the opposite of a character like Schmidt who craves power but only to become more intent on destroying the world including the people he’s really working for.

Other characters such as Peggy Carter, Dr. Erskine, Colonel Phillips, Howard Stark, and Bucky Barnes are well-rounded supporting characters that surround themselves with Rogers. Dr. Erskine is a man who is intrigued by Rogers’ determination as he sees someone who is pure of heart. This may not impress the more no-nonsense Col. Phillips but Rogers’ determination and willingness to fight does eventually win him over. These characters including the charming Howard Stark and the supportive Bucky Barnes do flesh out more of Rogers character but it’s Peggy Carter that is really won over by Rogers. Notably as she sees him as a man that just wants to do his job while there’s also some romantic tension between the two as they’re both intent on winning the war.

Thanks to the film’s adventurous and character-driven screenplay, director Joe Johnston is able to create a film that is very entertaining as well as giving the audience a superhero to root for. With its gorgeous set pieces with some visual effects to play up the world that Rogers is in. With lots of amazing sequences involving a chase scene early in the film as well as some battles, Johnston always play up an element of suspense to see what might happen and how Captain America will succeed. Notably as it is to establish what Captain America is facing where he has to prove that he’s not just some lab rat used to promote war bonds.

The film also had Johnston take his time to allow Rogers to relax and be human where he is sort of awkward in the way he deals with women while is also a guy that likes to hang out with his buddies. The compositions that Johnston gives are quite simple but also engaging since it also involves some small moments of humor and drama. Notably the scene between Dr. Erskine and Rogers about the upcoming experiment and Schmidt’s origins as the Red Skull. Johnston knows how to balance action, drama, and humor while also including a wonderful musical montage where Steve has to play Captain America selling war bonds that is pretty cheesy but also entertaining. Overall, Johnston does an incredible job in creating a film that is exciting and also heartfelt in the way it portrays Captain America.

Cinematographer Shelly Johnson does excellent work with the film‘s very stylish cinematography that is filled with elements of sepia washes for some of the film‘s interior scenes along with more low-key blue-green shots for some of the film‘s battle scenes. Editors Robert Dalva and Jeffrey Ford do nice work with the editing in creating wonderful montages for the war bonds stuff and Captain America‘s battles against Schmidt‘s men that is intercut with Schmidt‘s own reaction. Production designer Rick Heinrichs and set decorator John Bush do fantastic work with the set pieces such as the design for Captain America’s shield, the expo held by Howard Starks, and other 1940s sets and things to play up that world that Rogers lives in.

Costume designer Anne B. Sheppard does wonderful work with the costumes to play up that period of the 1940s including the different versions of the Captain America outfit. Visual effects supervisor Christopher Townshend does superb work with the visual effects to play up the look of the Red Skull and some of the set pieces while some of the effects of Steve Rogers early in the film doesn‘t look that great in some spots though it was effective to display his character.. Sound designers Stephen Hunter Flick, Shannon Mills, Daniel Pagan, and Jason W. Jennings, along with sound editor Howell Gibbens, do terrific work with the sound from the atmosphere of the expo to the battle scenes to display the element of suspense and action that occurs.

The film’s score by Alan Silvestri is brilliant for its soaring orchestral touches with elements of big-band brass music to play up the 1940s period. Notably as it includes some themes that is very patriotic including an original song co-written with David Zippel called Star Spangled Man in the film’s musical montage that is quite fun to hear.

The casting by Sarah Finn, Randi Hiller, and Priscilla John is outstanding for the ensemble that is created as it includes a cameo appearance from Stan Lee as a war general along with small appearances from Natalie Dormer as Col. Phillips’ secretary, David Bradley as a Norwegian tower keeper, Richard Armitage as Schmidt’s assassin, and Michael Brandon as Senator Brandt. Other notable roles include Kenneth Choi, J.J. Feild, and Bruno Ricci as fellow soldiers of Captain America’s team, Toby Jones as Schmidt’s cautious assistant Arnim Zola, Neal McDonough as the bowler-sporting soldier Dum Dum Dugan, and Derek Luke as the intelligent yet crafty soldier Gabe Jones. Stanley Tucci is superb in a very warm yet mesmerizing performance as Dr. Erskine who gives Rogers the experimenting while giving him wisdom about what it takes to be a good man and a good soldier. Sebastian Stan is very good as Steve’s friend Bucky who wants to protect Steve from joining only to aid him in defeating Schmidt.

Dominic Cooper is terrific as the arrogant but witty Howard Stark who provides the tools that Rogers needs while Tommy Lee Jones is excellent as the no-nonsense Colonel Phillips who spouts out some very funny lines in the film. Hugo Weaving is wonderful as the villainous Johan Schmidt who is willing to try and attain a lot of power while being intimidating to those who oppose him including the people he’s working for. Hayley Atwell is phenomenal as Peggy Carter in the way she maintains her role as an agent while proving to be quite handy with a gun as she also has some amazing chemistry with the film’s star in Chris Evans. In the role of the titular character, Evans brings a real sense of the everyman in this character as well as someone who knows that he just want to do what is right. It’s a truly charismatic and very grounded performance that proves that Chris Evans is really an incredible actor who doesn’t get much notice.

Captain America: The First Avenger is a spectacular and thrilling film from Joe Johnston that features an outstanding performance from Chris Evans. Along with top-notch supporting work from Hayley Atwell, Hugo Weaving, Stanley Tucci, and Tommy Lee Jones. It’s a film that does manage to create a superhero film with style and substance as well as a character to root for. Particularly as Joe Johnston is able to give the film a look and feel that feels true to the comic’s roots. In the end, Captain America: The First Avenger is a remarkable film from Joe Johnston.

Joe Johnston Films: (Honey, I Shrunk the Kids) - (The Rocketeer) - (The Pagemaster) - (Jumanji) - (October Sky) - (Jurassic Park III) - (Hidalgo) - (The Wolfman (2010 film))

Marvel Cinematic Universe: Infinity Saga: Phase One Films: Iron Man - The Incredible Hulk - Iron Man 2 - Thor - The Avengers (2012 film)

Marvel Phase 2 Films: Iron Man 3 - Thor: The Dark World - Captain America: The Winter Soldier - Guardians of the Galaxy - The Avengers: Age of Ultron - Ant Man

Marvel Phase Three Films: Captain America: Civil War Doctor Strange - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 - Spider-Man: Homecoming - Thor: Ragnarok - Black Panther - Avengers: Infinity War - Ant-Man & the Wasp - Captain Marvel - Avengers: Endgame - Captain Marvel - Spider-Man: Far from Home

Multiverse Saga: Phase Four: Black Widow (2021 film) - Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – Eternals – Spider-Man: No Way Home – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – Thor: Love and Thunder – Werewolf by Night - Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special

Phase Five: Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 – The Marvels – (Deadpool & Wolverine) - (Captain America: Brave New World) - (Thunderbolts*)

Phase 6: The Fantastic Four: First Steps - (Avengers: Doomsday) - (Avengers: Secret Wars)

Related: MCU is Cinema: Pt. 1 - Pt. 2 - Pt. 3 – Pt. 4 – (Part 5) – (Part 6) – (Part 7) - The MCU: 10 Reasons Why It Rules the World

© 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