12 STRONG

Chris Hemsworth     Michael Shannon     William Fichtner     Taylor Sheridan     Michael Pena     Navid Negahban

     This film had potential, but the filmmakers chose instead to make it one long, two-hour gun battle nonstop.  We hear a bit about the characters in the beginning, but not really enough to feel invested in them.  We are given a bit of war planning and arguing, then the 12 committed men are sent to Afghanistan as elite special forces with the primary purpose of disempowering Al Qaeda.  They will secure the alliance of a Taliban warlord with grudges against his rivals and a mutual hatred of Al Qaeda, which has just attacked the U.S. on 9/1/1.

     If we could have been given more back story about Captain Mitch Nelson (Hemsworth) who secured undying loyalty from his team including Hal Spencer (Shannon), Sam Diller (Pena), and others, their confidence in him and his leadership would have been more gratifying.     This is even more salient for the character General Dostum (Negahban), the Taliban leader with whom Captain Nelson has an ambivalent relationship.  What a rich and illuminating history he must have.  Having some light shed on the political and historical background of these relationships would elevate the story beyond constant war skirmishes. 

I’m reminded of the jokes about American westerns’ “white” hats and “black” hats that helped us identify the warring parties.  We have no such clues in 12 Strong, where it’s often difficult to tell which fighters are American and which are which Taliban.  Some of them are robed, and we know they are Afghans, but which are General Dostum’s and which are enemies is difficult to see.  My hunch is that those who are familiar with videogames—which are fast-moving—will have an easier time than I had.

    Production designer Christopher Glass and the visual effects artists have created impressive sets and special effects.  It is thrilling to see the American bombs hitting their targets and rockets flying through the air.  These filmmakers did their jobs well; I put most of the responsibility for neglecting character development in favor of never-ending battle scenes at the feet of the director, Nicolai Fuglsig.  I believe this is his first foray into directing a feature film, and hopefully, next time he will attend more to emotional and character development to give depth to his films.

     Chris Hemsworth is effective in depicting a dedicated American war hero who is sharp and cagy in his analyses and attuned to nuances and competing agendas in his dealings with others, whether friend or foe.  We do get a better idea of what kind of person he is.  That is not the case with the characters of fine actors like Michael Shannon, Michael Pena, Taylor Sheridan, and Navid Negahban.  They were wasted in this movie, considering their intrinsic worth.

     This is a story that needs to be told, but with many more details about the circumstances and the people involved.

Knights on (not white) horses win the day (not the war) in Afghanistan post 9/11.

Grade:  D+                                    By Donna R. Copeland

WIND RIVER

Jeremy Renner     Elizabeth Olsen     Jon Bernthal     Martin Sensmeier     Julia Jones

      Taylor Sheridan (writer, director) is an artist who knows how to draw out the best from the other artists in his films—Cinematographer Ben Richardson, Musician Warren Ellis, Actors Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen and the rest of the cast, Production Designer Neil Spisak, Art Designer Lauren Slatten, and the other technical contributors.  Wind River represents a breathtaking example of the essence of accomplished filmmaking, from the sweeping snow-laden landscapes stained with blood, to the haunting musical score paired exactly with the dialog and action, to Renner’s wise old soul with extra sensory perception and gentle touch, and Olsen’s expert urban-trained FBI agent clearly not prepared for the different environment and population, but willing to learn.  There is even an exquisite/troubling blending of stunning beauty and unspeakable horror.

     I was especially impressed with cinematography that has the camera slink around with Cory tracking footprints in the snow, and guiding the eye upward or downward toward whatever it wants you to see.  A view to admire is one shot from an airplane over a snowy, mountainous landscape, showing lumbering trucks on the highway bearing heavy snowmobiles.  This prepares us for a showdown.

     One would like to imagine that the pristine snowscapes we admire on the screen (as we sit in our toasty, comfortable theater seats) would hold innocence and purity and be reflected in fit bodies and souls.  But alas, just as we hear about the brutal attack by a lion on a herd of cattle, we see a fallen human body in the snow with a head wound and blood coming out her mouth.  Tracker Cory (Renner) sadly knows who it is, which provokes memories of an earlier death that still tears at him.

     Cory is a good man, a respected local who, even without the memories, would willingly help FBI agent Banner (Olsen) who has been called in to solve the case.  These sequences constitute the few scenes tinged with humor, when the agent comes totally unprepared for the bone-chilling weather and has to borrow warm clothing from the sheriff’s stern wife.  (“Make sure you return it!”)  Later encounters with the locals are likewise amusing when Banner meets native Indians, unwittingly offending them, and roughnecks working on an oil drill.  Cory and the sheriff wryly get her up to speed from time to time, and she shows flashes of leadership and strength.  (I wish Sheridan had made her character much stronger, as many filmmakers are willing to do with females nowadays…but maybe this is happening only in action figures a la Wonder Woman, Atomic Blonde, and Valerian/City/Thousand/Planets?)

     This beautifully made film has substantive points to make as well as depth of character.  It’s about loss and death—especially of children—and the multifarious ways in which people cope with it; life on an Indian reservation (this part is not fiction); the nefarious effects of drugs on young people; the art of skillful, informed sleuthing and interrogation; and, finally, how satisfying justified retribution can be. 

Be prepared for an extravaganza of beauty in all its forms mixed with the realities of life lived.

Grade:  A                                    By Donna R. Copeland

HELL OR HIGH WATER

Chris Pine     Ben Foster     Jeff Bridges     Gil Birmingham

          All the filmmakers involved in making Hell or High Water deserve high accolades.  It’s a western taking place mostly in Texas, but takes a novel approach in its breadth of scale—its characterization of Texans, the depth and complexity of the characters and the actors playing them, the empathic focus on both the bank robbers and the Rangers pursuing them, social commentary, soulful tunes and soundtrack (Nick Cave, Warren Ellis), and cinematography (Giles Nuttgens) that captures the landscape as well as the intricacies of the plot.  Director David Mackenzie and screenwriter Taylor Sheridan, I commend you for your perceptiveness and creativity in making such an intelligent and entertaining film.

        Toby (Pine) and Tanner (Foster) fit the often typical dynamics of a broken home—one brother being the “good” one that stays devoted to his mother and the other a troublemaker with a prison record.  They are brought together after the mother’s death by Toby’s (the good guy) plan to re-coup funds that their mother lost to the bank for a quite legal reverse mortgage on the ranch and back taxes, which the bank paid.  Toby, who is resentful about being poor all his life, is way behind on his child support payments for his two boys, learns that unless the mortgage is paid off, he will lose the ranch.  There is a deadline for paying it off before the bank forecloses on it.

        Toby’s plan is to enlist his brother’s help (keep in mind his brother just got out of prison for bank robbery) in robbing banks and getting just enough cash to save the ranch. This plan is conceived by a very smart person, which is to get only small bills in small amounts (can’t be traced and FBI won’t be involved), only robbing small banks early in the day.

       Enter Texas Ranger Marcus (Bridges) and his sidekick Alberto (Birmingham).  Marcus is old and getting ready to retire, and Alberto goads him about this while Marcus makes cutting remarks about Alberto being a “half-breed” (Indian/Mexican).  It’s easy to see they’re both fond of one another in a manly way.  Marcus likes to play the fool, but there is calculation and perceptiveness behind all his apparent foolishness.  He knows people and reasons through what they’re likely to do next.  Bridges may get an Oscars nom for his outstanding performance.

        This is the art of Taylor Sheridan’s storytelling; he sets everything up, tells us who the characters are, and sprinkles in little surprises and wonderful humor along the way.  Example:  In the T-Bone Café, you’re asked about what you don’t want (vegetables), which leaves only a steak to order, and the crusty waitress knows exactly how to get you to order what will come to the table.  Touches of humor like this, extended moments of tender emotions, and quick splashes of violence punctuate the story.

       The film provides all the excitement you would want in resolving the outcome of the robberies and the pursuit of the perpetrators, all the while commenting on Texans’ infatuation with their guns, car chases (which are more realistically rendered than any current action movie), and the western movie genre.  Keep this in mind as you watch the film:  Marcus’ observation of “The things we do for our kids.”

      This must be one of the most thoughtful and clever endings in the history of film, completely pulled off by two gifted actors (I won’t tell you who they are).  Seeing and listening to their conversation gives us the full picture of the ethical/moral issues involved in the point of view of each.  One can easily imagine that ultimately they would agree with one another.  What a film!

A new connotation of “Best Western.”

Grade:  A                        By Donna R. Copeland