A haunting elegy for the Old West

Rating: Null/10 (17 November 2011)

"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford", written and directed by Andrew Dominik, and starring Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck, is one of the most striking and memorable films I've seen lately. I'd heard about the film before – heard that it had been a commercial flop, but was widely regarded as an underrated masterpiece, and one of the greatest westerns of our time. So I finally gave it a go, and boy, I heard it right! It's hard to pin down what it is that makes this film so great. I mean, sure, the acting, cinematography, music, etc. all play a big role. But there's something else going on here, some kind of cinematic alchemy at work that you don't see everyday. The film is haunting, beautiful, dreamlike yet piercingly real. There's something incredibly elemental about it. You can feel the coldness of the wind against your cheek, the warmth of the fire on your feet. You can feel the dirt underneath its nails, the water as it runs down its face.
The story, based on an (especially then) obscure novel by Rob Hanson, concerns the relationship between the two titular characters: Jesse James (Brad Pitt) and Bob Ford (Casey Affleck). The title pretty much gives away the central event, but the film also covers the time leading up the big event, as well as its aftermath. Just in terms of period detail, it's probably one of the most realistic and historically accurate westerns I've ever seen.
On its visual merits alone, it's an incredible watch, one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen. This should come as little surprise to those familiar with the cinematographer, Roger Deakins, but even so, this film is one of the jewels in his already illustrious crown. The look of the film is like old photographs of the era, or artwork from the likes of Andrew Wyeth. It is at once gritty and beautiful, realistic and otherworldly. Its use of light and shadow, natural scenery, and blurring effects at the edges of the screen also stand out. There are only a handful of filmmakers whose work you can mute and simply enjoy as visual experiences, among them Stanley Kubrick, Andrei Tarkovsky, and Terry Malick, to name three. This film easily qualifies in this category.
The acting is also excellent, though generally understated. Brad Pitt, who can often be a hit-or-miss actor, hits here with a vengeance. It's easily one of the most subtle performances I've ever seen from him, and his screen presence alone would've made an Oscar nod warranted. Casey Affleck is also great, sometimes even stealing the scene from Pitt, and his ability to make us feel several things about a character at one time is impressive. The supporting roles, played by notable actors such as Sam Rockwell, Mary-Louise Parker, Jeremy Renner, Sam Shepard, Zooey Deschanel, and Michael Parks, round out the cast beautifully.
The music, by Australian artists Nick Cave and Warren Ellis (both of them new to film scores) is incredibly beautiful, capturing the folk music spirit of the Old West, and compliments the tone and atmosphere of the film remarkably well.
If one forced me to find one criticism of the film, it would be that it's a little too long. But I don't like making that claim, because I can't help thinking of the Emperor Joseph II, who criticized one of Mozart's operas for having "too many notes". Mozart reportedly replied, "Which notes would you like me to remove, your highness?" Though I have the subtle feeling that the film is longer than it strictly needs to be, I can't think of any one scene or sequence that could be removed without diminishing the film somehow.
All in all, it's a wonderful film, and it's a crime that it isn't more well known than it is. I cannot recommend it highly enough. It will burn itself into your memory.