Hell or High Water is a movie that recalls the grandiose of westerns while giving it a modern and fresh spin which is highlighted by screenwriter Taylor Sheridan’s ability to present a think piece wrapped up neatly in a solid A to B plot. Throw the 4K into this mix and what you get is a beautiful modern classic.
I still remember going to see Hell or High Water in the summer of 2016. It had been a down summer for movies, and nothing had really caught my attention all that much until this movie, which is Written by Taylor Sheridan, hit. If you’re unfamiliar with Sheridan’s work’s, then you should do your best to acquaint yourself. He is the writer of the critically acclaimed, and I can say fantastic, movie Sicario, as well as the writer and director of the just as good Wind River. Simply put the man is on a hot streak, and Hell or High Water is included in that.
The Movie stars Chris Pine and Ben Foster as Toby and Tanner Howard, two brothers who are robbing banks, so they can make enough money to save their deceased mothers land from repossession. On the opposing side is Academy Award winner Jeff Bridges and Gil Birmingham, as Texas Rangers Marcus Hamilton and Alberto Parker, who are tasked with catching the Howard brothers. Along the way you are not only presented with this cops and robbers story set in west Texas, but also a story about the hardships of life and societal greed as whole. That is one of the biggest strength of this movie and of all Sheridan’s work. He can present these deep ideas to you while also keeping his main plot in perspective and not lose sight of what is going on in his own screenplays.
The acting in this film is off the charts good. This is a movie that highlights how perfect dialogue mixed with perfect character building can just absolutely take a movie to a whole new level. Jeff Bridges gives, in my humble opinion, his best performance since Crazy Horse. There is a spot during one of the final confrontations where Bridges displays about four different emotions in the span of about five seconds and it left me stunned. His back and forth banter with Gil Birmingham’s Alberto is both funny and emotionally revealing. Birmingham is an actor who based off his performance in this, and in Wind River, that we really need to see more of. On the other side of the story, I was incredibly impressed with Chris Pine. He is someone who I had thought of as a pretty boy, but he shows he has some serious acting chops. The final scene between him and Bridges is just perfect. Not to be forgotten, Ben Foster delivers a gritty and flawless performance as Pines loose cannon brother.
As said above, all this amazing acting work is helped by Sheridan once again showing he is a master at creating meaningful characters. In this movie there wasn’t one side to root far because the characters are split by more than just good and bad. When the bank robbing does finally come to an end you are also left with some very mixed emotions. The question that you can ask yourself is does an evil deed become justifiable if it is for the good of another? There is also no line of dialogue that will leave you shaking your head at your television screen. Everything just flows with regards to acting and writing.
Not to be forgotten is David Mackenzie’s directing, and the cinematography of Giles Nuttegens. Both men help to deliver Sheridan’s script in impactful ways that tie everything together. It really is a shame that Mackenzie didn’t at least get nominated for an academy award for this film. The point to all this is that this is a film where all the major parties involved really bring their absolute A game and have made a film that will be, by many, considered some of their best work.
The setting of West Texas also adds an element of lore to this film. You see how everything is changing and how the west is old, but the new west seems just as old. I reminded me a bit of Bladerunner and how one of it’s themes was the future is old. It’s a stirring look that also lets you know that there are still stories to be told from this land. It also captures the perils of being a bank robber in modern Texas as almost everyone is carrying a weapon. Bridges on more than one occasion must tell a Texan to not shoot the robbers if they see them.
The West Texas scenery is where the 4K really shines in this film. It is absolutely stunning at this level of resolution. I will say that this is a movie that is so powerful and so well crafted that you could not watch it in 4K and still be as fulfilled as a viewer. However, if you do have the capabilities to watch it in 4K you should most definitely do so. Not much beats a West Texas sunset in 4k. Also, who wouldn’t want to see Jeff Bridges and Chris Pine at a higher resolution?
Ultimately, I thought that this film was the best to come out of 2016, with all due respect to Moonlight and La La Land. It is a film that shows the western is not dead and is one that any fan of the genre should see. It was going to be hard for Sheridan to top his work on Sicario, but by god he somehow did it. Watching this movie is watching film at its highest level. It’s just a masterclass on character, plot, and theme. Throw in viewing it at 4K and you have a movie that leave your jaw dropped and that will have an impact on you like few other films can have.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23-f8TKVXvs
