Review of Hell or High Water (2016) by Spangle — 24 Aug 2016

Texas fried to its very core, Hell or High Water is a film with a deep Southern fried aesthetic from its look, feel, and killer soundtrack/score. With terrific performances from Chris Pine, Ben Foster, and Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water is a thoroughly unique family-fueled crime film.

It may be a touch heavy-handed at times with its anti-bank mentality, but this is more than overcome by its terrifically crafted characters. The brothers are very multi-dimensional, as though they may be criminals, we feel for them deeply because of their circumstances and hope they can get away with it all.

That said, even the cops are well developed. Bridges' character and his relationship with Gil Birmingam's character is terrific. Not only is their banter hysterical, but for friends and fellow cops, they are given a shocking amount of depth.

In addition to its terrific writing, Hell or High Water is a sturdy film that defies expectations, as is tradition with David Mackenzie's films. He takes typical premises and more than just spruces them up.

Instead, he reinvents it and turns it into a fully nuanced and powerful film that explores family relationships and how far you will go to help your family. Even more, it explores the violent nature of man and how thin the line between life and death is and can be.

The film's cinematography is also terrific with some seriously beautiful shots strewn through this film. Not only did it capture the Southern aesthetic as previously mentioned, it really captured the look and feel of the towns it was set in.

This is also heavily due to the film's terrific production and set design. Overall, Hell or High Water is a real gem set to go down as one of the very best releases of 2016.