Underappreciated (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (DVD))

Member Name: jane08

Product:	The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (DVD)
Date:	11/02/09 (33 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Characterisation and cinematography

Disadvantages: None!

Underappreciated

When people hear the title 'The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford' they're instantly put off, and let's be honest who can blame them. It's long winded, to put it mildly, and seemingly gives away the entire plot and ending of the movie. People's reluctance to see it increases as soon as they hear that it's a whopping 160 minutes long, not even Brad Pitt can sway their enthusiasm. However, despite the appalling title and excessive length, this film is amazingly good and, rather unfortunately, widely overlooked by the public and critics alike. In my opinion, this should have been nominated for best film at the 2008 Oscars and I was disappointed when it wasn't, especially when you consider that 'Michael Clayton', 'Atonement' and 'Juno' got nods.

This film isn't about a big revelation; we already know Robert Ford is going to kill Jesse James, anyone who has ever read anything on the iconic figure will already know that, alternately those of us who didn't can just look at the title. This film is a character study. We principally follow Robert Ford (Casey Affleck), a man who has worshipped Jesse James as a hero since his early childhood. Who was it that said meeting one's heroes can only lead to disappointment? Upon meeting Jesse and becoming a 'trusted' member of his diminishing gang, Robert becomes disillusioned with his hero, eventually betraying him.

The character of Robert Ford, as played by Casey Affleck, is at times sympathetic, at
other times annoying or pathetic, all marvellously portrayed by Affleck. Don't imagine this to be a Ben Affleck like performance, they may be brothers but Casey is clearly a superior actor. Brad Pitt is also excellent as Jesse James, he plays the character with a subtlety that suggests the character is almost inviting death. Generally the entire cast is excellent, there's not a weak performance in there.

One thing that really could not be faulted in this movie is the cinematography. This is most clearly depicted in the frequent narratives which are set against beautiful scenery and a subtle yet haunting piece of music. However the entire movie is stunning to look at.

If you're still worried about the length then don't be. I generally get a little annoyed with long films, they're often good but could usually be chopped down by a good hour and still be good. In this case I think the length is perfect. It is a long film but it doesn't feel that long, I got completely swept up in the plot and the visual spectacle to the point where I could have watched it for longer.

Overall, it's definitely one of the best movies of 2008, I'd put it up there in the top three along with 'There Will Be Blood and 'No Country for Old Men', on a good day I might even be swayed to put it as number one among the three.

Summary: One of the best movies of 2008