Hey, everyone. ”Moriarty” here. I wasn’t even going to open MiraJeff’s e-mail until I posted my review for this one a little earlier. I’m glad to see he liked it (it’s turning into a real point of debate between some people), and I’m hoping that love it or hate it, people just give it a chance. I’m not sure how MiraJeff’s prioritizing right now, since I find myself having to choose between several potential events each night right now, but I’m glad he was unafraid of the length and made time for this one.
Greetings AICN, MiraJeff here. Writer-director Andrew Dominik’s The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford is an amazing film of epic beauty and tragic poetry, but it is not quite the masterpiece some critics would have you believe it is. Why not? Because the undeniable fact of the matter is that it’s too long. Believe me, I know how lazy it is to criticize a brilliant film for being too long or too short or too whatever, but that doesn’t make it any less true in this case. I mean, I’m not asking for a flawless edit or anything, because if a film is as great as this one is, you should love it flaws and all (see: In the Valley of Elah), but there’s no question that its daunting 160-minute running time is not the ideal length. And I’m well aware of how this is a lyrical, slow-burning firecracker of a film whose poetry resides in those lingering takes and brooding reaction shots and that cutting those shots down would perhaps lessen its impact, but if there was ever a movie in need of a Harvey Scissorhands cameo, it’s this one. Even his helping hand would’ve been welcome, at least by me, because a nip and a tuck here and there would’ve made the narrative so much tighter and the drama and tension and suspense that much more immediate. And it’s not that Dominik’s film is self-indulgent or pretentious, because that’s hardly the case, but it could stand to lose those oh-so-precious minutes involving needless supporting character banter. There are times when Dominik seems so focused as a director, in constant pursuit of sculpting his vision of the film, but there are times where he seems to wander a little aimlessly, like an in-over-his-head director in search of direction himself. It almost seems like he’s afraid to fully commit to the central story, the story of two men and two men only, Jesse James and Bob Ford, one larger than life, the other an anonymous fan desperate to escape the shadow of his friend and idol. At its heart, Dominik has crafted an exquisite film about jealousy, betrayal, the desire to be remembered, and one man's lifelong, child-like fascination with another man, kind of like Brokeback Mountain if Heath and Jake weren't allowed the emotional release of sex, leaving them with the same sort of anger, bitterness and resentment that Bob carries like a burden he's proud to shoulder. Brad Pitt’s casting as Jesse James, is, in a word, genius. He is the only actor I could imagine taking on such an iconic character. In a way, the myth of Brad Pitt nearly rivals that of Jesse himself, who’s got some big cowboy boots to fill. Thankfully, Pitt’s haunting performance nearly does his legend justice. I say nearly because, as we all know, Pitt’s acting is hampered by some limitations. And don’t get me wrong, I think Pitt is a fantastic actor who doesn’t get nearly the credit he deserves because the majority of press he gets focuses on his sex symbol status or his love life instead of his impressive body of work (Seven, Fight Club, Babel, Oscar-nommed for 12 Monkeys), but he’s not exactly Tom Hanks, and as solid as he is playing the legendary outlaw, his big For Your Consideration moment fails to resonate and on the whole, his performance is upstaged by his younger co-star, an actor whose talents are underestimated in their own right, Mr. Casey Affleck. Quite frankly, Affleck is a revelation as Robert Ford. It truly is a career-making turn. Up until now, the majority of moviegoers have thought of Casey as Ben’s little brother, but with The Assassination of Jesse James, he completely comes into his own as his character matures from a saucer-eyed kid who can’t help but fawn over this legend whose stories he grew up reading to a full-grown man who can’t help but resent his friend’s status and betray him in the name of fame and glory. Paul Schneider and Jeremy Renner both do solid supporting work as Dick Liddil and Wood Hite, respectively, but to be honest, Dominik spends too much time on their characters. Schneider is prominently featured in the first half in the film but his character hardly figures into the plot during the second half, marginalizing his earlier contributions. For example, some of the film’s more comedic moments at the beginning feature excellent dialogue but have no real bearing on the story besides slowly establishing the setting and its inhabitants. We know that they both pose some sort of a threat to Jesse James and there’s a lot of talk about someone named Jim Cummings but to be honest, that whole plot thread was a bit confusing and hard to follow, aside from the fact that we know Jesse fears the people around him as he becomes increasingly paranoid about his and his family's survival. Speaking of Jesse’s family, Dominik tries to inject some emotion into an otherwise cold film (the other major marketing challenge aside from its length and genre) with Jesse's wife (Mary-Louise Parker) but I wasn't completely sold on it because she's barely in the movie up until that point. It’s a worthwhile attempt but I just didn’t find it wholly convincing. I just thought, ‘oh, I guess Weeds was on hiatus.’ The below-the-line contributions are stellar across the board. Roger Deakins, the brilliant cinematographer whose work also appears in No Country For Old Men and In the Valley of Elah, deserves an Oscar for his incredibly gorgeous work in this film. Dominik is bound to receive most of the praise this film will receive but you have to tip your hat to his collaboration with Deakins, a veteran D.P. whose compositions are staggering in how stunning they are. Also meriting the Academy's attention is Nick Cave's fantastic score, which haunts the images as it compliments them, particularly during a brilliantly lit train robbery sequence that serves as the film’s highlight. I'd also venture to say that although the film is set in the West, it’s very different than most Westerns, and those who will inevitably compare Jesse James to 3:10 to Yuma are ultimately missing the point and doing a disservice to both films. Again, the film works because of the strength of its performances and the visual collaboration between Dominik and Deakins. I have to admit I was surprised when I found out Brad Pitt won the Best Actor award at Venice because of how thoroughly outshined he is by Affleck’s performance, but I’ll be even more surprised if the Academy fails to recognize him too. This is a huge step forward for him as an actor and he’s too good here to be ignored in the Best Supporting Actor category where he is most likely to get nominated, even if I personally feel he’s clearly the main character in the film. In fact, the film suffers whenever he’s offscreen, ultimately dragging a bit in the middle when Casey’s absence was long enough for me to have noted it. I think Deakins has a great shot at a nomination, if not winning outright, and I’ll be rooting for him come Oscar night, but there’s still some fat on the film’s edges and I just don’t see it as a Best Picture contender. People are so quick to choose one end of the spectrum and label a film a 'masterpiece' or 'shit',’ but movies can achieve varying degrees of success. The pacing issues here are entirely forgivable and you shouldn’t let them deter you from seeing this marvelous work of art. I loved some of the lingering close-ups of Casey and how drenched in mood and atmosphere the film was. I didn’t mean to suggest that the problem with the film is that Dominik doesn't know when to cut and move on. There is genuine magic up on that screen, especially in the final reel where we see the toll Bob’s decision has taken on him and the legacy he meant to leave behind. Bob’s development over the course of the film is heartbreaking and the considerable changes he goes through are significant, as they should be when a character has 160 minutes to develop. And not to harp on the length because they movie never lost me, but I have more patience than the average filmgoer. A movie's running time doesn't scare me off, personally, but it is a major detriment to others, especially older folks which is the group I think this movie is targeting, the folks who grew up with Westerns and played Cowboys and Indians and who actually know who Jesse James is. I know the WB suits pressured Dominik to make cuts and I think in this instance it would’ve been wise to listen. I’d argue that most people would’ve even notice what went missing if he shaved 10 minutes overall. I’m a firm believer that once the audience starts getting restless you've lost them, and to be honest, I saw some folks getting antsy around the halfway point when they started realizing there was another 80 minutes to go. Again, the length didn't kill it for me and it doesn’t take away from the accomplishments of the film, but I don't think I could get my mom to see a nearly 3 hour movie and she’s the biggest Brad Pitt fan alive. That’ll do it for me, folks. I won’t have time to write full reviews of Into the Wild or Good Luck Chuck but the latter was a hilarious, pleasant surprise and the former was every bit as phenomenal as Moriarty’s review implied. He said it better than I ever could so check out his review if you’re on the fence about Sean Penn’s latest, and keep in mind that Emile Hirsch’s performance is every bit as groundbreaking as Affleck’s here. It’s a pretty good time to be a movie fan. Savor it. I’ll be back with reviews of Lars and the Real Girl, Reservation Road and Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead. ‘Til next time, this is MiraJeff signing off…
