Directed By Martin Scorsese; Screenplay By Eric Roth & Martin Scorsese; Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Lily Gladstone, Jesse Plemons, Tantoo Cardinal, John Lithgow, and Brendan Fraser.
Based on David Grann’s 2017 nonfiction book of the same name, Killers of the Flower Moon is set in Oklahoma during the 1920s. It tells the true story of the serial murder of members of the oil-wealthy Osage Nation, a string of brutal crimes that came to be known as the Reign of Terror. This is the latest from legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese. For the first time ever, he pairs two of his most frequent collaborators, Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro, in the same film together.
Scorsese is a director who’s clearly never made the same movie twice. He definitely continues that trend very successfully with Killers of the Flower Moon. Although it does have some of his trademarks. Among them are impeccably mounted production values, brutal depictions of violence, and long continuous shots. Credit for the former definitely belongs to production designer Jack Fisk while cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto deserves credit for the latter. Not to mention that Scorsese is still one of the few filmmakers who knows how to use the 3 hour+ runtime right. Editor Thelma Schoonmaker keeps everything moving at a very brisk pace, where it never feels boring. There’s also moments of comic relief that flow naturally from the actors.
Leonardo DiCaprio may be one of the biggest movie stars in the world, but he’s also one of the greatest actors working today. As the main character, Ernest Burkhart, a cab driver who just returned home from World War I, he delivers some of the strongest work of his career. Robert De Niro is quite charismatic as Ernest’s uncle, William King Hale, a prominent millionaire and reserve deputy sheriff. However, Lily Gladstone is such a revelation here as Mollie, an Osage woman from a wealthy family who develops a relationship with Ernest. Her performance manages to be emotionally haunting and effective at the same time. Neither John Lithgow nor Brendan Fraser show up until the third act. When they eventually do, they make for great glorified cameos.
Killers of the Flower Moon may be coming to Apple TV+ at a later date, but I still urge you to see it in theaters if you can. A three and a half hour drama done this well is something we rarely see anymore. It has the best of what cinema and a television miniseries has to offer, riveting storytelling from beginning to end. Even though the movie itself is a whole lot to take in on a first viewing. Perhaps there'll be more to explore on subsequent rewatches.
Rating: 4.5/5
Based on David Grann’s 2017 nonfiction book of the same name, Killers of the Flower Moon is set in Oklahoma during the 1920s. It tells the true story of the serial murder of members of the oil-wealthy Osage Nation, a string of brutal crimes that came to be known as the Reign of Terror. This is the latest from legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese. For the first time ever, he pairs two of his most frequent collaborators, Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro, in the same film together.
Scorsese is a director who’s clearly never made the same movie twice. He definitely continues that trend very successfully with Killers of the Flower Moon. Although it does have some of his trademarks. Among them are impeccably mounted production values, brutal depictions of violence, and long continuous shots. Credit for the former definitely belongs to production designer Jack Fisk while cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto deserves credit for the latter. Not to mention that Scorsese is still one of the few filmmakers who knows how to use the 3 hour+ runtime right. Editor Thelma Schoonmaker keeps everything moving at a very brisk pace, where it never feels boring. There’s also moments of comic relief that flow naturally from the actors.
Leonardo DiCaprio may be one of the biggest movie stars in the world, but he’s also one of the greatest actors working today. As the main character, Ernest Burkhart, a cab driver who just returned home from World War I, he delivers some of the strongest work of his career. Robert De Niro is quite charismatic as Ernest’s uncle, William King Hale, a prominent millionaire and reserve deputy sheriff. However, Lily Gladstone is such a revelation here as Mollie, an Osage woman from a wealthy family who develops a relationship with Ernest. Her performance manages to be emotionally haunting and effective at the same time. Neither John Lithgow nor Brendan Fraser show up until the third act. When they eventually do, they make for great glorified cameos.
Killers of the Flower Moon may be coming to Apple TV+ at a later date, but I still urge you to see it in theaters if you can. A three and a half hour drama done this well is something we rarely see anymore. It has the best of what cinema and a television miniseries has to offer, riveting storytelling from beginning to end. Even though the movie itself is a whole lot to take in on a first viewing. Perhaps there'll be more to explore on subsequent rewatches.
Rating: 4.5/5