The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)
Perhaps a case of different expectations for me, as this is much more a literary contemplative drama than a western, or at least that take on western myths with a tragic tale of meeting your heroes and succumbing to public reputation. The slow, almost mellow mood and poetic cinematography made this sort of a cozy evening. Not from the narrative but from the atmosphere.
What didn’t quite work for me though was how much the literary source seeps through everything. Literary films can be amazing, but I think the balance has tipped too much here, as it relies heavily on introspective examination of characters. And honestly, Brad Pitt didn’t work that well for me in this role. What should be inner thought processes coming across the screen through acting, never registered with me. After the assassination and we see the aftermath for Robert Ford, and Casey Affleck does manage this sort of role better than Pitt in my opinion, things got a bit more interesting with the portrayal of the price for fame. Sadly, I think this epilogue part of the film felt a bit rushed and while I didn’t wish for the already long film to be any longer, it did end just as it was getting interesting.
Rating: 3