Just shoot him already!

Rating: 2/10 (28 February 2008)

Of all this puzzling mess's fatal flaws, the one I find most perturbing is what was Andrew Dominik attempting to do with the repetitive panoramas of flying time-lapsed skies? Was it counterpoint to the mindlessly glacial pace of the script or simply a reminder that every other scene was going to be more of the same? More of Casey Affleck's whiny petulance? More of Brad Pitt's gratuitous scenery chewing? More marginal characters whose presence is never wholly explained or understood because they are all swallowing their lines in a desperate attempt to sound more authentic? It is a shame that a lot of the truly meticulous production values were wasted on a self-important story that could have been told far more effectively and succinctly. As many negative writers have already said, I want that 2:40 of my life back, and I wanted Bob Ford to shoot Jesse after about 30 minutes.