The Western genre feels like it's undergoing a little bit of a resurgence lately. Everyone on the planet is seemingly addicted to Red Dead Redemption 2 and all of them are singing it's praises. HBO's TV show Deadwood is finally getting a film to finish off storylines left hanging when the show was cancelled in 2006. Earlier this year we had the fantastic Godless miniseries on Netflix and now courtesy of Netflix again we have the latest Coen Brother's movie The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs available to watch. It's a good time to be a western fan.
This is an anthology film consisting of 6 short movies linked together by the book they all appear in. Some work brilliantly. Some are good and one is terrible. They are all very obviously Coen Brother's movies though. That mix of humour and violence that they do so well. They range from flat out silly slapstick to deliciously dark comedy to tragedy to one story so black it threatens to throw the entire enterprise off kilter. You'll be entertained and then you'll be absolutely appalled.
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is the first story and it sets out the film's stall in fine fashion. An absurd and silly slice of bloody slapstick with a great showing from Tim Blake Nelson as the titular sharpshooter. In rapid succession we get the tale of a bank robber and his ghoulish fate, a horrific story of a travelling one man show, an account of the hardships of prospecting, a Shakespearian tragedy set on the great plains (this one was my favourite by far) and a yarn about a strange carriage ride. The last one is a real dud that mars an otherwise fine film but because each story is self contained it gladly doesn't affect the other stories.
If you're a western fan there's so much to enjoy here. Two lovely and very different takes on The Streets of Laredo, that tragic ode to cowboy life written in 1910; the brief appearance of a hand of cards made very famous by the death of Wild Bill Hickok in a Dakota Tavern; a bank teller going full Ned Kelly; a ridiculous duel that wouldn't have looked out of place in Blazing Saddles and a saloon singalong direct from Paint Your Wagon; a very Coen take on the story of manifest destiny and more. The stories may be short but there's surprising depth in there too. The 3rd story, Meal Ticket, is a pitch black allegory about the death of the old west and All Gold Canyon is about how man's greed and never ending thirst for more will be the undoing of us all but in the end as a race we are truly insignificant in the greater scheme of things.
It's a bit all over the place though. A mix of stories that mythologise the old west and revisionist stuff that shows it in all it's brutal actuality make for an odd tonal mishmash. It's hard to see who it's going to appeal to apart from genre fans and even then people will struggle with it. The jumble and lack of direction will irritate some. The casual brutality will alienate others. The format keeps it from getting boring though. If you don't like one story another will be along soon. The cast will draw people in too. Liam Neeson, James Franco, Tom Waits, Brendan Gleeson, Zoe Kazan and even Tyne Daly of Cagney & Lacey shows up livening up the crappy final section.
It's plain to see the Coen Brothers love a western though. From the western noir of Blood Simple to the modern set No Country For Old Men to their surprisingly old fashioned retelling of True Grit to this. It's a lovingly crafted film full of nods to famous moments, faces that look like they've been plucked directly from the era and stunning vistas that would feel right at home in a John Ford movie. Different styles make an appearance too. The cheesy musicals of the 50's, the Peckinpah style violence that regularly occurs, the James Franco lead second story that flirts with the trappings of Spaghetti westerns and we even get a taste of the supernatural that brings to mind forgotten films like Grim Prairie Tales.
This film would never have seen the light of day if it wasn't for Netflix. Experiments like this just don't get into cinema's anymore. It's great that we get the chance to see them. It's not always successful but its always worth watching
This is an anthology film consisting of 6 short movies linked together by the book they all appear in. Some work brilliantly. Some are good and one is terrible. They are all very obviously Coen Brother's movies though. That mix of humour and violence that they do so well. They range from flat out silly slapstick to deliciously dark comedy to tragedy to one story so black it threatens to throw the entire enterprise off kilter. You'll be entertained and then you'll be absolutely appalled.
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is the first story and it sets out the film's stall in fine fashion. An absurd and silly slice of bloody slapstick with a great showing from Tim Blake Nelson as the titular sharpshooter. In rapid succession we get the tale of a bank robber and his ghoulish fate, a horrific story of a travelling one man show, an account of the hardships of prospecting, a Shakespearian tragedy set on the great plains (this one was my favourite by far) and a yarn about a strange carriage ride. The last one is a real dud that mars an otherwise fine film but because each story is self contained it gladly doesn't affect the other stories.
If you're a western fan there's so much to enjoy here. Two lovely and very different takes on The Streets of Laredo, that tragic ode to cowboy life written in 1910; the brief appearance of a hand of cards made very famous by the death of Wild Bill Hickok in a Dakota Tavern; a bank teller going full Ned Kelly; a ridiculous duel that wouldn't have looked out of place in Blazing Saddles and a saloon singalong direct from Paint Your Wagon; a very Coen take on the story of manifest destiny and more. The stories may be short but there's surprising depth in there too. The 3rd story, Meal Ticket, is a pitch black allegory about the death of the old west and All Gold Canyon is about how man's greed and never ending thirst for more will be the undoing of us all but in the end as a race we are truly insignificant in the greater scheme of things.
It's a bit all over the place though. A mix of stories that mythologise the old west and revisionist stuff that shows it in all it's brutal actuality make for an odd tonal mishmash. It's hard to see who it's going to appeal to apart from genre fans and even then people will struggle with it. The jumble and lack of direction will irritate some. The casual brutality will alienate others. The format keeps it from getting boring though. If you don't like one story another will be along soon. The cast will draw people in too. Liam Neeson, James Franco, Tom Waits, Brendan Gleeson, Zoe Kazan and even Tyne Daly of Cagney & Lacey shows up livening up the crappy final section.
It's plain to see the Coen Brothers love a western though. From the western noir of Blood Simple to the modern set No Country For Old Men to their surprisingly old fashioned retelling of True Grit to this. It's a lovingly crafted film full of nods to famous moments, faces that look like they've been plucked directly from the era and stunning vistas that would feel right at home in a John Ford movie. Different styles make an appearance too. The cheesy musicals of the 50's, the Peckinpah style violence that regularly occurs, the James Franco lead second story that flirts with the trappings of Spaghetti westerns and we even get a taste of the supernatural that brings to mind forgotten films like Grim Prairie Tales.
This film would never have seen the light of day if it wasn't for Netflix. Experiments like this just don't get into cinema's anymore. It's great that we get the chance to see them. It's not always successful but its always worth watching
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