176. The Sisters Brothers; movie review
Cert 15
122 mins
BBFC advice: Contains gory images, strong violence, language
Hold on, I am used to my cowboys talk gruffly or monosyllabically - for example, Clint Eastwood or Charles Bronson.
John C. Reilly and Joaquin Phoenix portray hardened gunslingers but sound as if they have swallowed dictionaries.
So, amidst the falling bodies, whisky slugging and loose women, their notorious brothers have meaningful repartie.
This is not the only quirk in a movie which is interesting but well short of its nearest comparisons -The Hateful Eight or Django Unchained.
Reilly and Phoenix star as siblings who are employed by the mysterious Commodore to round up and kill people who have wronged him.
He has also recruited an educated private detective (Jake Gyllenhaal) to befriend and betray a chemist (Riz Ahmed) who has invented the formula for turning rock into gold.
However, the brothers' pursuit is not straightforward - grizzly bears, poisonous spiders and the demon drink are among the most significant obstacles.
And, unknown to them, the private detective's head has been turned by the scientist's plan for a Utopian society in Texas.
So, The Sisters Brothers becomes a twisting tale of violence and double-cross, albeit with characters who appeared to have studied poetry.
Reilly proves again that he is an adept straight actor, playing the frustrated foil to Phoenix's off-the-rails hard man.
In turn, Phoenix shows that he is most at home away from mainstream Hollywood movies.
Gyllenhaal gives a strange, nuanced performance as the detective who is more at home discussing scholarly work in a faux English accent.
And Ahmed is equal to the good company as the brainbox who is vulnerable to the erratic behaviour of Wild West cowboys.
Meanwhile, the detailed backdrop of a hard-as-nails Wild West adds to the atmosphere conjured by director Jacques Audiard.
His problem is that his film doesn't provoke enough laughs nor shock enough to hit the quality line for which he is striving.
Reasons to avoid: Its weird tangents
Laughs: None
Jumps: None
Vomit: Yes
Nudity: None
Overall rating: 7/10
Did you know? The era known as the Wild West, or the American Frontier, began after the Civil War in 1865 and ended around 1895.
The final word. John C. Reilly (who also produced the movie): "The reason that this happened is that the book demanded it, you’re like, holy crap this needs to be a film. It’s so visual when you are reading the book, there are so many images and characters that just jump out of you." RogerEbert.com
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