Is the Western a dead genre? It would certainly seem that the Western as a genre has been dying for some time. Sure there are still movies made about the West, but clearly the frontier as it was called in the past has been discovered many times over. But legends still persist. And as long as interest in those legends persist the Western genre will survive. Not as gloriously as in the past, but as a genre with something to say about the large canon of works that center around The West as a mythology in American History.
John Wayne was obsolete by the New Hollywood. And Clint Eastwood made his last Western in 1990 with Unforgiven. It seems that no one has come along to take up the mantle of the quick on the draw, tough as nails, Western leading man. Some efforts have been made like Brad Pitt in Jesse James. Surely he has large boots to fill. Playing a legend is not so easy. Only a personality like Pitt could take on such a large role. He brings a deeper psychology then John Wayne ever had in any of his characters. And unlike Clint Eastwood he doesn’t vanquish his foes at the end. It is a different kind of Western leading man than has been portrayed in the genre.
The film is the story of Jesse James last two years of life. It’s starts out with a train robbery. There is much made about the life of a bandit in The West. It seems those were the glory days for cowboys. Sitting around a fire, talking about sex, getting ready to pull off a heist with the legendary Jesse James; only in the Old West could it have happened. I wonder how many young boys still dream about being a bandit and robbing trains or banks?
It is these fantasies that the film plays on. It is thoughts like these that have obsessed Robert Ford. Played by Casey Affleck, he is despised by almost everyone in the film. Right away he is scene as a coward to be detested for his dastardly act. The film plays out the rivalries among the James gang until we reach Jesse James’ hideout. On a fateful day Robert Ford shoots him from behind with his daughter, son, and wife close by. The film then wraps up by giving a brief history of Robert Ford’s ignominious fame as the assassin who killed Jesse James.
What really stands out in this film is the acting. The director and actors should be commended for their efforts in the film. The casting of Pitt against a smaller, weaker Casey Affleck is a stroke of genius. Their contrasts make the assassination scene that much harder to bear and more intriguing. In that scene alone there could have been another movie made. It’s almost like a film within a film. The tension, the extreme melancholy between the Ford boys and Jesse James is painstakingly depicted. I could almost feel a migraine or a bout of depression coming on as I watched Affleck wash his face, then sit in the rocking chair waiting to strike down Pitt with his new gun. The amount of restraint that was shown during the scene from each actor made it seem almost surreal. It seemed like time had ground to a halt. And all the World was contained in that room in the cottage.
The film feels like a novel with all the narration. Most screenwriters are instructed to not use too much voice over because it comes off as sloppy screenwriting. The rule is “show, don’t tell.” I’m not sure if I like all the narration. In some parts it was useful. In other parts it seemed like a show from the History channel which was tedious and boring. I suppose the intention was to give the legend some weight from what appears to be a secondary source in an omniscient narrator. The narration allows the film to jump from year to year and place to place. It’s especially well used at the end of the film to show how the Ford Brothers met their end after they had a brief stretch of fame.
The film aspires to what other classic Westerns aspire to; mythology. The West is it’s own mythology which has been portrayed in movies for decades. From the John Wayne and John Ford years to more contemporary films, films have created myths and legends like Jesse James which fascinate audiences. The Western is not dead. And this film is proof of that.
No comments:
Post a Comment