Mini Review #2: Hell or High Water
By Eva Claire Schwartz
Director David Mackenzie’s Hell or High Water reads as a modern-day
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
but with a cause. Toby (Chris Pine) and Tanner (Ben Foster) are two estranged
brothers who come together to repossess their family’s land from Texas Midland
Bank, paying it off with money from robbing said bank’s multiple branches. Driven
to ensure the futures of his children, Toby has higher stakes than Tanner, who
is reckless and savage, actually firing guns and ending up on a fierce sharpshooting
chase through the mountains.
The enjoyment of this film comes
from the subtly of Taylor Sheridan’s (Sicario)
script interlaced with issues facing farming families, Native Americans and
poverty. The most powerful card in Hell
or High Water’s stack is the balance between corrupt bank robbery and noble
fatherly action. Is there any dispute that stealing is wrong? No. But we
empathize with Toby for wanting to provide for his sons and dig them out of the
meager hole they’ve been born into.
Action packed and nicely paced, Hell or High Water reminds us of Old
West classics while throwing in enough heart to remind us that not all action
films are driven by the pulling of a trigger.
Director:
David Mackenzie
Producers:
Sidney Kimmel, Peter Berg, Carla Hacken,
Julie Yorn
Cast:
Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Gil
Birmingham, Marin Ireland, John-Paul Howard, Katy Mixon, Dale Dickey, Kevin
Rankin, Buck Taylor
Screenwriter:
Taylor Sheridan
Run
Time: 102 minutes
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