The other day...

...in the conversation, my friend Alexa told me she reviews books for a magazine, i shared with her my desire to do the same with movies, and it's how everything begins!

Here is my first publication!

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Dead Fox Film

January 4th

The Western isn´t dead.

The Western isn´t dead.

Western has always been in the air, in terms of fashion, music and photography. Western has always had an iconic look to it.

In terms of the Western film genre, however, it seemed to have reached a dead end… But like Robert Redford and Paul Newman´s trapped outlaws at the end of Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid, it finally looks like the Western film has made a return.

Despite the success of Clint Eastwood´s Unforgiven and Kevin Costner´s Dances With The Wolves, the genre that explained and defined America so well for much of 20th century, had a long period of recession, but finally it looks like Western is back and is literally galloping over the horizon!

One of the first films to regenerate the genre was the re-make of the 1957 film 3:10 To Yuma in 2007, this second adaptation of Eleonore Leonard´s short story was directed by James Mangold, who made the Johnny Cash biopic Walk The Line.

The story centres around a farmer (Christian Bale) who is in a desperate struggle to save his land. He is forced to escort a famous outlaw, Ben Wade (Russell Crowe), to catch the 3:10 to Yuma, for the reward of $200.

When I saw the poster I was mesmerised by how stylish these two men looked: it took my breath away. I needed to see it as soon as possible, and I thought, Western is back!

It is a real ”boys” film, visually beautiful, with a lot of dust, in the tradition of the genre, I left the cinema with the sounds of the guns still in my ears.

Continuing the Western “Nouvelle Vague”, The Assassination Of Jess James by the coward Robert Ford was released just a few weeks after the re-make of 3:10 To Yuma. The film is a drama adapted from Ron Hansen´s 1983 novel, directed by Andrew Dominik.

Everyone in 1880s America knows Jesse James (Brad Pitt): the nation’s most notorious criminal, hunted by the law in 10 states. But he’s also a popular hero, and perceived as a Robin Hood figure by the public. Robert Ford (Casey Affleck) is anonymous, no one notices his existence - well, not yet. The ambitious 19-year-old aims to change all that, by joining Jesse and riding with his gang.

This film is made brilliant by its stunning visuals, award-worthy performances, and a story that reflects a classic and stylish Western mood.

My focus really comes into the genre of western film with the much anticipated, No Country For Old Men, the Coen brothers’ adaptation of Cormac McCarthy´s violent and modern wild west tale.

Acclaimed everywhere, it has been nominated for eight Oscars . Violence and troubles come after a hunter stumbles upon some dead bodies, a stash of heroin and more than $2 million in cash near Rio Grande. The film stars Tommy Lee Jones as Sheriff Ed Tom Bell, a laconic soon-to-retire small town sheriff, Joshin Brolin as Llewin Moss, a welder and Vietnam veteran who flees $2 million in drug money; and Javier Bardem as Anton Chirgurh, an assassin hired to recover the money.

The film is a true visual experience, a “cinema-photo“, reflecting the style of Jim Jarmuch and leaving you with lots to meditate on. The camera work absorbs the scenery of the endless west Texas desert and captures its beautiful and haunting imagery.

The camera also seems to absorb the characters’ faces and fills your mind with their every detail - the placid, cold face of Javier Badem, and the old, beautiful, lined features of Tommy Lee Jones. Both characters are contrasted well in the film and this balance of good and evil lets you reflect on elements of human nature and injustice in the world.

The focus of the movie is more on the visual, as opposed to the plot. The Coen’s’ technical abilities, and their feel for a landscape-based western is beautifully classic.

I´m delighted with the come back of the Western, and very much look forward to the promising There Will Be Blood.

-Laure Brosson-