Directors: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Screenplay: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Starring: Tim Blake Nelson, James Franco, Liam Neeson, Zoe Kazan, Tom Waits, Tyne Daly, Brendan Gleeson
Running Time: 133 minutes
Genre: Western
This is an anthology film consisting of six unconnected short stories set in the Old West: A singing gunslinger (Nelson) meets his match; A condemned bankrobber (Franco) tries to escape his fate; An elderly impresario (Neeson) and his artist, who has no arms and legs, scratch out an existence travelling from town to town; A prospector (Waits) dreams of riches as he searches for gold; Following the death of her brother, a young woman (Kazan) undertakes an arduous journey in a wagon train; and a group of travelers in a stagecoach encounter a pair of bounty hunters en route to a strange destination.
This film is funny, dark, profound, violent, occasionally lyrical and often beautiful. As with all anthology films, some segments work better than others, although they are all impressive, well-written and well-performed. The Coen Brothers are no strangers to the Western genre, and here they make full use of their gift for dialect and witty, absurdist dialogue. The first story is the most traditionally "Coen-esque" being a violent and funny take on the "singing cowboy" genre. The second story starts as a simple hold-up tale before becoming something much more poignant. The third story is a dark tale of cruelty, with a disturbing conclusion. The fourth story which is almost entirely a single-hander, featuring a great performance by Tom Waits, is dramatic and beautiful. The fifth story, which features a powerful performance from Zoe Kazan, is possibly the most traditional, until it's heartbreaking conclusion. The sixth story marks a turn almost into "weird west" territory with a strange and ambiguous tale set in a stagecoach to a surreal town. This film had a limited theatrical run before being released onto the Netflix streaming service. Personally I loved it, and hopefully it will to another revival of the Western genre.
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