Toby (Chris Pine), a divorced father living in Texas, is trying to find a way to create a better life for his sons after a life of poverty. To do it, he teams up with his ex-con brother Tanner (Ben Foster) to plan a series of heists against the bank that's about to foreclose on their family's farm. Standing in their way is Marcus (Jeff Bridges), a Texas Ranger on the verge of retirement, who is dedicated to stopping the brothers.
Hell or High Water is a movie that pretty much came out of nowhere for me. I had no idea what it was about, or what the story was, and going in blind was probably the best option. Since the story was so expertly written and paced, it was a joy to watch it unfold either way.
The strength of the story comes in a large part from the fact that both sides are portrayed in likable ways. While the two brothers are criminals, their motivations are very clear and understandable, and the bond between them is perfect. Chris Pine was excellent in this movie, but the standout performance comes from Ben Foster, who always had an air of eccentricity underlined by a dark intensity. His character approaches situations in so many different ways that it's hard to get a read on who he really is, but it weirdly all fits together along with a screen presence that's just captivating to watch. Foster's over-the-top character was very well balanced with Pine's more reserved and level-headed character, and the bond between them especially worked because they really felt like brothers. Their relationship wasn't perfect, or anything less than tumultuous, but there is an undercurrent of family with everything they do. Every character meshed well with the others around them, and they all had an important role to play, even if it didn't initially seem that way. Jeff Bridges and his partner had hilarious interplay, and even small characters that the brothers came across were a lot of fun.
Great writing is something that I've found to be in short supply this year, and I absolutely loved this film's screenplay. A distinct feature of it was that so many scenes ended on a line or an action that was just the perfect punctuation for the scene itself. Some of the most memorable moments of the film are the punches that hammer a scene home. The story itself was very cleverly put together, and it was never really clear where it was going, or especially how it would end. Even though the story itself was very simple, and it for the most part follows what you might expect from a crime drama, enough original ideas were brought in that it felt new.
But writing isn't the only strength that this film has. This movie is beautifully directed; not only in terms of visuals, but in how sequences were crafted. The robbery sequences were built on almost non-violence for a while, so when the finale comes and everything goes insane, it's a noticeable escalation, and a natural one. That escalation worked so well because of how many elements of the film were foreshadowed and built up. Some of the most important parts of the story were established very subtly early on, and were brought back later in some surprising ways. So many scenes showed a mastery of tension, and even scenes of two people staring at each other always seemed to be on the edge of an explosion. Paired with the brilliant script, this film never lets up in terms of entertainment and quality.
The film itself just looks beautiful, and really takes advantage of the wide open country where the story takes place. The sprawling plains of Texas feel enormous and dusty, and the towns the brothers visit feel run-down and poor. That old and worn-out environment was the perfect setting for this story of fighting through poverty, and along with the perfectly integrated soundtrack, it has the authentic feeling of a Western. The dark and gritty atmosphere was certainly spot-on. Modern-day Westerns are an interesting genre, and this is without a doubt one of the best. It worked for me in ways that other films like No Country For Old Men didn't, and it shows how effective such a simple story can be when it's told so well.
In the end, Hell or High Water is one of my favourite films of the year so far. It's a fantastically written and executed crime thriller, and it's so gorgeous that I never wanted to look away. It's a film I hope to revisit soon, because there's so much in it to enjoy. Fantastic performances drove a wonderfully written story forward to a climax that was nothing short of breathtaking. This is a film that I'll be encouraging people to watch as much as I can, and it's the kind of film that I believe refutes the opinion that "original film is dead". Great original film is everywhere, you just have to look in the right place.
Hell or High Water is a movie that pretty much came out of nowhere for me. I had no idea what it was about, or what the story was, and going in blind was probably the best option. Since the story was so expertly written and paced, it was a joy to watch it unfold either way.
The strength of the story comes in a large part from the fact that both sides are portrayed in likable ways. While the two brothers are criminals, their motivations are very clear and understandable, and the bond between them is perfect. Chris Pine was excellent in this movie, but the standout performance comes from Ben Foster, who always had an air of eccentricity underlined by a dark intensity. His character approaches situations in so many different ways that it's hard to get a read on who he really is, but it weirdly all fits together along with a screen presence that's just captivating to watch. Foster's over-the-top character was very well balanced with Pine's more reserved and level-headed character, and the bond between them especially worked because they really felt like brothers. Their relationship wasn't perfect, or anything less than tumultuous, but there is an undercurrent of family with everything they do. Every character meshed well with the others around them, and they all had an important role to play, even if it didn't initially seem that way. Jeff Bridges and his partner had hilarious interplay, and even small characters that the brothers came across were a lot of fun.
Great writing is something that I've found to be in short supply this year, and I absolutely loved this film's screenplay. A distinct feature of it was that so many scenes ended on a line or an action that was just the perfect punctuation for the scene itself. Some of the most memorable moments of the film are the punches that hammer a scene home. The story itself was very cleverly put together, and it was never really clear where it was going, or especially how it would end. Even though the story itself was very simple, and it for the most part follows what you might expect from a crime drama, enough original ideas were brought in that it felt new.
But writing isn't the only strength that this film has. This movie is beautifully directed; not only in terms of visuals, but in how sequences were crafted. The robbery sequences were built on almost non-violence for a while, so when the finale comes and everything goes insane, it's a noticeable escalation, and a natural one. That escalation worked so well because of how many elements of the film were foreshadowed and built up. Some of the most important parts of the story were established very subtly early on, and were brought back later in some surprising ways. So many scenes showed a mastery of tension, and even scenes of two people staring at each other always seemed to be on the edge of an explosion. Paired with the brilliant script, this film never lets up in terms of entertainment and quality.
The film itself just looks beautiful, and really takes advantage of the wide open country where the story takes place. The sprawling plains of Texas feel enormous and dusty, and the towns the brothers visit feel run-down and poor. That old and worn-out environment was the perfect setting for this story of fighting through poverty, and along with the perfectly integrated soundtrack, it has the authentic feeling of a Western. The dark and gritty atmosphere was certainly spot-on. Modern-day Westerns are an interesting genre, and this is without a doubt one of the best. It worked for me in ways that other films like No Country For Old Men didn't, and it shows how effective such a simple story can be when it's told so well.
In the end, Hell or High Water is one of my favourite films of the year so far. It's a fantastically written and executed crime thriller, and it's so gorgeous that I never wanted to look away. It's a film I hope to revisit soon, because there's so much in it to enjoy. Fantastic performances drove a wonderfully written story forward to a climax that was nothing short of breathtaking. This is a film that I'll be encouraging people to watch as much as I can, and it's the kind of film that I believe refutes the opinion that "original film is dead". Great original film is everywhere, you just have to look in the right place.
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