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Reviews
News of the World (2020)
Phenomenal performance by Helena Zengel
The twelve year old girl was incredible in the role of Johanna. I could not believe how someone so young could act so well in a difficult role. Otherwise, the film was well shot, with very authentic -looking old west settings. It's an all round solid film and the other performances were very strong. The storyline is well paced and the main character, Hanks has a clear goal with several difficult challenges along the way. The ending is very touching and satisfying. Highly recommended.
Honor Among Thieves (2021)
A very poorly designed storyline
Every good film must have a solid foundation which is the story. This film had poor motivation for the main character. He decides to go after a kidnapper of a girl for the sole purpose of receiving a fortune in gold from her father. This is not a likeable main character. He hesitates to take the mission, thinking there might be a situation in which he has to kill the kidnapper because he has sworn off killing. But at the moment in which he faces the bad guy, there's no inner struggle at all. He wounds the bad guy in a shootout and then calmly kills an incapacitated man with ease. When he brings the girl home to her father we find out she is in love with him and wants to marry him but we are given absolutely no clue to this point of her feelings, no character development at all. When she is reunited with her father, there's no emotional reunion, as if she just came home from shopping. Then two associates of the man the main character killed jump him and steal the bounty he received for rescuing the girl, yet there is no explanation for how the thieves could have had the slightest idea he received any bounty. Then there is a sudden flash forward of five years and we discover that the marriage of our main character and the girl is on rocky ground with them cursing at each other.. The main character decides to try to get the stolen gold back from the two men who stole it from him. The thieves are anything but dangerous or daunting, and appear more as comedians and blithering idiots. The climax of the story, the shootout, occurs midway in the film. The ending of this film is ridiculous and not worth describing. What is the point to this? This is a disjointed amalgamation of scenes with no point, no central mission for the main character. Not a good example of screenwriting craft. The producer should have had a better slush pile script reader and not have invested in a poor quality screenplay.
Old Henry (2021)
Could hardly be improved upon
Tim Blake Nelson gave a superb performance. Everyone in this was top shelf. The dialogue was spare and earthy. The pace of the story was steady and never dragged. The film was beautifully shot, both exteriors and interiors. There was a great dedication to be faithful to the time period in the look of the film. You couldn't ask for a more powerful climax than the shoot out at the end. The revelation at the end elevated the story above the typical western. The relationship between son and father had a touching resolution. Great western film.
Last Shoot Out (2021)
Not as bad as others say
Brock Harris gave a good performance as the strong silent cowboy type. There were some really terrific character actors that gave the story a western feel. The leading lady was young and pretty and, unlike some westerns, she didn't look like she just came out of a Beverly Hills salon. Her romance with the main character was sweet and restrained. The great Bruce Dern unfortunately has grown too old to seem dangerous as the bad guy. The story lacked a central seemingly unstoppable bad guy that is so essential to a western. I would have thought that Cam Gigandet, who is a fine actor, would have filled that role, but unfortunately he disappears after the start of the film and only reappears at the end and offers virtually no opposition to the main character. The final victory is too easy for the good guys and anti-climactic. We never feel the tension of their extreme jeopardy which eliminates much of the suspense. I don't think a single good guy was killed at the final shootout despite being outnumbered. The locations, buildings, and structures had a rugged authentic look but the film was shot in virtually the same location throughout, with little variety as to exterior or interior shots. The younger brother played by Michael Welch had a terrible part written for him, spending the entire film whining about getting his wayward bride back, again and again and again. In virtually every one of his scenes. I love westerns. I found this watchable but a little below average.
Desperate Riders (2022)
Not top shelf but watchable
I would have given this a 3.8 but 4.0 was the closest I could get. I watched this all the way through. I thought the storyline was engaging and contained a few surprises, about the supposedly kidnapped woman and the secret of the identity. Of the man tracking her The acting was not atrocious and the main character. Drew Waters as the strong silent type had a solid rugged quality. I'd like to see him in something else. The performance by "Doc" who we see at the beginning and end was good, too. He's a good character actor. The women were not convincing at all and with make-up and fashionable hair did not help suspend my belief that I was watching a real story. The most glaring problem to me were the locations. The western towns and saloons were realistic and rough looking. But the fact that the outlaw kidnappers holed up in a series of absolute mansion like homes out of lifestyles of the rich and famous in what was supposed to e a desolate wasteland far from civilization made it difficult to believe in the reality of the world of the movie. I am a nut for westerns and don't agree that this this is the worst I've ever seen. I've seen far worse.