Review of Hell or High Water (2016) by Chris O — 21 Jun 2018

A thrilling, intense ride.

Texas brothers--Toby (Chris Pine), and Tanner (Ben Foster), come together after years divided to rob branches of the bank threatening to foreclose on their family land. For them, the hold-ups are just part of a last-ditch scheme to take back a future that seemed to have been stolen from under them. Justice seems to be theirs, until they find themselves on the radar of Texas Ranger, Marcus (Jeff Bridges) looking for one last grand pursuit on the eve of his retirement, and his half-Comanche partner, Alberto (Gil Birmingham). As the brothers plot a final bank heist to complete their scheme, and with the Rangers on their heels, a showdown looms at the crossroads where the values of the Old and New West murderously collide.

This was an interesting film. It has been two years since this movie has come out and considering it garnered a lot of buzz at the Oscars (which I don't care about), I'm surprised it took me this long to watch it. It's just been sitting on my shelf for a while now and just until recently, I hadn't plopped it into my Xbox One. Then, my friend came over and we decided to watch "Hell or High Water" on one of our many movie nights. It was a really solid ride overall, even if I may not have fully been able to appreciate it the first watch-through.

One thing fantastic about this film was the talent. Chris Pine and Ben Foster really took charge and put on great performances in this film. Their overall talent and ability to work together gave something very interesting. However, am I the only one who saw them and thought of Sam and Dean Winchester? I don't know why, as they didn't necessarily match those same personas, but I just thought of those two. Anyways, the characters they played were characters with opposing personalities, which gave them a lot of clash, but a lot of work well also.

Overall, I felt like this movie was just really tense. It wasn't necessarily this adrenaline pumping thing, nor was it slow. It was in the middle, setting up its scenes with these really deep, intellectual conversations and moments. Especially the ending, I really enjoyed a lot of the moments in this film that spoke so much without necessarily saying a lot.

In the end, "Hell or High Water" was a solid film with some great moments. It had great cinematography, great acting, solid characters, and a good story ark. Overall, a solid watch.