Pure poetry in film

Rating: 9/10 (25 January 2016)

Is it parody?, partly. Is it satire?, for sure. Is it a commentary on the absurdity of frontier life?, a bit of that too. This movie is so bold and subtle it is great theater to watch. The wide screen film format is a wonderful feat of cinematic tradition. The story evolves with dramatic, intense suspense as we learn about the role and background of each character. The stage is set in Minnie's haberdashery. A coming together of events that seem random, but turn out to be carefully orchestrated. An old fashioned mystery style who "done it" carefully directs our thinking and attention to each character. Jackson is the pivotal character and he is masterful to the end. One of the best movies. Sure there is gratuitous gore, but it is so over the top, it becomes satirical and speaks to the fascination we all have for it.