Movies - Understanding the Election

I finally saw “Hell or High Water,” which has been doing excellent business as an independent film, and is now generating Oscar buzz. It’s about two brothers in rural Texas (“Star Trek”’s Chris Pine, and Ben Foster, who was so nasty in the “3:10 to Yuma” remake a few years ago). They’re small-time bank robbers, and are pursued by a grizzled old sheriff (Jeff Bridges) and his Cherokee/Mexican partner.

​The story is by Taylor Sheridan (“Sicario”), and reminds me a lot of Jeff Nichols’ “Mud,” which was one of the Matthew McConaughey resurgence films a few years ago. (Nichols’ new film, “Loving.” is generating major Oscar buzz.) It shows us the American South as a poor place, with jobs gone and banks repossessing land. These brothers are desperate, not intrinsically bad, people, who have no choices left. The film gives us both their, and the sheriff’s, points of view. It’s about circumstance, not moral judgement. All the actors are superb, and the cinematography and direction (by British guys!) captures the feeling of desolation brilliantly, with road signs focused on debt and loans. It’s not a formula film, and helps us understand the feelings of the dispossessed in what have become Red states. Our establishment hasn’t paid attention to these folk. A timely movie!

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