by Jake Bourgeois, Contributing Writer
A new stylish take on the western has dropped on Netflix as The Harder They Fall rode on to the streaming service.
The film is the showdown between a pair of outlaw gangs whose leaders have a long history. On one side is The Nat Young Gang, led by Jonathan Majors as a Robin Hood of sorts with a vendetta. He teams up with Zazie Beetz, RJ Cyler, Edi Gathegi, and Danielle Deadwyler. On the other side is The Rufus Buck Gang, led by the recently freed Idris Elba and flanked by Regina King and LaKeith Stanfield.
From the moment you hit play, this thing absolutely oozes style. It’s the first feature-length directorial effort of Jeymes Samuel, the other director credits being a 52-minute project with a seemingly similar kind of story and a short on Jay-Z. He cut his teeth in the music industry. Having that context, you can totally feel his musical ear at play here. The use of music really adds to the atmosphere Samuel tries to create with his visuals. There’s plenty of flair with how those are presented, too, (particularly in a hostage scene on a train). He also does a fantastic job of playing up the sense of dread and tension that’s present any time Elba’s Buck walks into a room.
There’s also plenty of flair when the guns start shooting. The over-the-top blood spurts are reminiscent of Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained, though slightly more restrained. The comparison is an intriguing one given how personal telling this story appears to be to Samuel. Westerns with black leads are a rarity, at least that I’ve come across. I can’t think of one besides Django off the top of my head. Even in that film, a black gunslinger is treated with disbelief. Samuel’s mission statement leads off the top of the film clearly shows how much he’s hoping to change that. “While the events of this story are fictional…These. People. Existed,” the opening message read. It’s clear that this story is something he was passionate about and the film is much better for it.
Samuel is obviously aided by the performances of his stellar cast. Our two lead couples are the stars, with Majors and Beetz on one side and Elba and King on the other. All four of them are giving fantastic performances and are at their best when interacting with one of the other three. King may have the best moment with a monologue about some past family tragedy of her own.
Outside of our four leads, the rest of the respective gang members have their moments. I particularly loved the fast-talking, fast-shooting RJ Cyler (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) as Jim and Deadwyler as Cuffee, Beetz’s companion. Stanfield, in an understated role, doesn’t get as many chances to shine, as the film focuses more on Young’s gang than the other, but when he does make his presence known, it stands out. Delroy Lindo as a marshal in this film is also unsurprisingly great.
I’m still trying to work through how I feel about how the film ends. The emotions worked for me and I think it works with the story, but it is one of the rare moments that the music was a little too on the nose.
At its heart, it’s a pretty typical western story, buoyed by its tantalizing style and some top-class acting talent. If this is what Samuel is bringing to the table with his first major effort, I can’t wait to see what he brings audiences next. Particularly if he approaches it with the same passion and eye that appears to be here.
Grade: A-
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