Review -- Gunslingers

                             

The Western genre has been going through quite the resurgence in recent years. From Tarantino's The Hateful Eight to the bloody remake of The Magnificent Seven and to the Western Americana esthetic of shows like Yellowstone and Landman, the genre has been steadily regaining popularity. Having helmed a few Westerns like the effective Dead Man's Hand, director Brian Skiba is back with an all-star cast in a unique story.

Thomas Keller (Stephen Dorff) is a man on the run after accidentally killing a member of the Rockefeller family in a skirmish that supposedly left Thomas's brother Robert (Jeremy Kent Jackson) dead. He comes across a town called Redemption that serves as a haven for wanted men and women, housing a bunch of misfits led by spiritual leader Jericho (Costas Mandylor), who helps organize mock executions so that the residents are safe from the outside world. However, a posse led by Robert who survived the initial shootout soon comes to town, not intending to leave until they find Thomas and leaving a trail of bodies in their wake...

The narrative is an old fashioned revenge and vindication story that benefits greatly from the cast chemistry and the beautiful cinematography by Patrice Lucien Cochet. Some reviewers have criticized the color palette, but its misty and somber quality fits the themes of crime, sin and isolation well; any kind of bright coloring would have been out of place. The movie blends its visuals with its topics seamlessly, something that not many works manage to do. There are also some great landscape shots which contribute to the sense of the characters' inner and possibly innate wilderness and the outer wilderness that they have been exiled to.

The subject of sin, punishment and absolution is one that not many recent movies have delved into; You Should Have Left comes to mind as a rare example of a work that examines the subject in an innovative way. Gunslingers does something bold and different. It does not allow for much emotion or sentimentality to interject with its characters' journeys, being as pragmatic with its treatment of the Redemption residents as they themselves are with their brutal and self-sufficient lifestyle choices. Not knowing what awaits from day to day and the inevitable consequences of reckless and lawless decisions are depicted in a bare-bones approach by Skiba, without frills or additions, stripped down to survival of the fittest. The movie creates art out of its no nonsense perspective.

That point brings me to an aspect of the movie that I wish had been developed further. The lives of Redemption residents are at a virtual standstill and that type of human existence would have been fascinating to explore, so I do wish that a number of the supporting characters had been better developed. Apart from a few references, like Lin (Tzi Ma) talking about his past and occasional details about other denizens' lives, we do not get a full picture of what this kind of life would do to a person and how it would contrast with who these people were before they were rescued from themselves, so to speak. It would have been interesting to mix a bit more philosophy and psychology into the story, particularly because of its themes.

The cast does great work and have a believable, comfortable rapport. Dorff gives a subtle, understated performance and is especially nuanced in the first and last few scenes. The actor is always so good and spontaneous, one does not even notice that he is acting, and this performance is yet another one that shows his range. Nicolas Cage does quirky like no one else and he is completely unleashed here, playing an eccentric character that has found his home among other outsiders. Heather Graham is always a cool presence and here she elevates what could easily have been a damsel in distress in another filmmaker's hands. On that note, the female characters of Gunslingers are impressive, possessing agency and authority and never waiting on the sidelines to be saved.

Gunslingers is an engaging movie with a compelling story and fine performances. It is a Western piece that feels like a play with its set-up at times, which suits the narrative arc, makes it intriguing to watch and might possibly even make you think about life. Pay a visit to Redemption. You will be glad that you did.

9/10