Drawbacks that Ruin a Film

Rating: 5/10 (17 July 2010)

A slow pace, art house, western. Like No Country for Old Men, the film explores the theme of the illogical notion of idealizing the past. Both films end up attacking the "idealization" by showing the past, like the present, as being a bleak, secular world. For those people looking for an action western-- look for another film; the film is structure mostly on conversations between characters. It is a very, slow pace film.
On the positive aspects, Casey Affleck and Sam Rockwell,as well as most of the supporting cast is superb... Affleck ( not Ben) and Rockwell should be cast in more films. Roger Deakins' cinematography is done in an unique, old photograph style, manner. Personally, not a fan of the look, but many people are. Also, the wardrobe and set design appear realistic.
The film fails to become a pleasant experience, since there are too many drawbacks. First of all, Brad Pitt is miscast; he is completely overshadow by the rest of the cast. Normally, this would not be a problem, but the film depends on the legend and stage presence of Jesse James(Pitt's character). Though ambitious, the fails to deliver the book, documentary mood. Many directorial decisions, such as the use of narration, hurts the impact of many scenes.