A recent conversation with Airport Friend and others brought me to a Western directed by Andrew Dominik set in the aftermath of the American Civil War. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) includes true characters from the history of the United States, including outlaw Jesse James, criminal Robert Ford, and others. This blog post highlights the movie and offers a rating on whether you should tune in.
The core family of Jesse James, as portrayed by Brad Pitt, included Mary-Louise Parker as Zee James as well as the children James and Mary. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford shows Jesse James to ostensibly be a caring and engaged father with his kids, as additions to the leader of thieving outlaws that he also was. A part of the crew when Robert Ford introduces himself into the fray was Robert Ford‘s brother, Charley Ford.
Casey Affleck portrays Robert Ford whereas Sam Rockwell portrays Charley Ford. Charley Ford is the elder brother of Robert, which proved to be part of the way Robert Ford was introduced to the outlaws. Robert’s initiative with the brother of Jesse James, namely outlaw Frank James, played a part.
The notion of family grows through the telling of the movie The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. Frank and Jesse James were legends in their own rights, which were parts of the credibility and backstory many viewers brought into this film. The brothers had mutual trust and respect, though the mechanics of that story weren’t the feature narrative of this film. The relationship of Jesse James with the band of outlaws, including Ed Miller as portrayed by Garret Dillahunt, proves to have significance.
Jeremy Renner played Robert Woodson ‘Wood’ Hite, first cousin to the James brothers in film. Dick Liddil, as played by Paul Schneider, joins in the story in furtherance of the background story for Jesse James and Robert Ford. Comic relief as well as that backstory were the relevant takeaways I made for the presence of Liddil and Hite. Without giving things away, and generally thinking audience’s can infer as they please from the titles of movies, I perhaps have pointed you to an important dramatic thrust for the film.
I appreciate the film The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, which works hard to establish mood through narrative and cinematic storytelling. Music, imagery, and camera angles all contributed to the move the notion of Western away from some of the conventional movie tropes that accompany the genre. Addressing whether the proposed assassination was in fact cowardly, and the perceptions of some key characters within the storyline helped. How the final threads came together were weaker for me than I would have preferred, though I do like the path Andrew Dominik took in getting us to what finished fully. I rate The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford at 3.75-stars on a scale of one-to-five.
Matt – Saturday, October 10, 2020
Matt Lynn Digital 