Review of Slow West (2015) by Eeb W — 05 Jun 2015

I liked this movie even more than I should have, I think. It has just the right amount of quirkiness and campiness that it doesn't give into moments of disbelief... too much. But even though at times it felt like one thing or another was a bit off, whether it be narrative events that are unlikely to happen in real life (not meant for comedic purposes), inconsistent pacing, the wild west being full of wildlife and almost recognizable (they actually shot in New Zealand, but I'll excuse this because of the alluring cinematography), my favorite part of the film was the 3rd act and man does eclipse all of it. I'd talk about why I loved it more but I would have to spoil it... That being said the first to acts are great on their own as well, and I'm probably just being too nitpicky.

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Michael Fassbender plays an outlaw named Silas who helps a young man named Jay (Smit-McPhee) from Scotland find his runaway love-interest. The girl of his dreams is Rose Ross, and she is in hiding with her father John Ross because they are wanted for a crime. The events of the crime are laid out to the audience in flashback fashion, consequently there is a bounty on their heads: $2000 Dead or Alive.

A separate group of outlaws are aware of the bounty, except only the boy knows exactly where the Ross clan reside.

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The genre of the journey West, or any reiteration of it, is always going to be a personal favorite of mine because it is representative of man striving towards his or her dream. The boy has a dream of being with the girl who haunts it, but being the still naïve and innocent boy that he is he doesn't realize that in this gruesome world things don't only happen simply because you want them to. It is never only about right or wrong, sometimes its just about money; never underestimate its power.

Simply said, although the film may seem inconsistent at times, it is too good to ignore. I actually think that it is one of the better movies that have come out this year. Originality plays a great factor on how I rate films, and if it were only on originality and wit I would give this movie a perfect score. I want to give it a perfect score. But I can't. There are flaws, and not just the kind a critic can brush aside.

I give this film...

3 kills out of 4 wanted men.

Just A Thought.