Review of The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018) by Richard B — 20 Dec 2018

Grim Reaper.

Death is waiting for us all in this wonderful portmanteau of Western tales. That just about sums up the message but does little to celebrate the artistry of its delivery. Death comes wrapped in gruesome, ironic, and downright ridiculous circumstances, and the jokes always on us for expecting anything different.

Of course the tales vary in quality and style - some are like a couple of punches, then a knockout while others are long and drawn out. The Western is one of their better genres because of the inherent brutality of the settings. Gunslinger, bank robber, gold prospector, tent show freak, wagon train and stagecoach, all provide genre settings for the final act. The cast is varied, uniformly excellent - especially an unrecognisable Tom Waits, Liam Neeson, Tim Blake Nelson and the wagon train couple. The scripts sparkle in their nihilism, and while there are fragments of hope, by the end of all episodes save one, all hope is totally lost.

It is the Coen brothers at their best, despite the fragmentary nature of the piece. They've been kissing the grim reaper since 1985, mocking the human condition and I doubt they will ever stop.

Pure entertainment.