"The Harder They Fall" Review: A Refreshing Western Genre Entry
The Harder They Fall is a stylish, fully realized vision from co-writer/director Jeymes Samuel. Rooted in the western genre it borrows French New Wave characteristics as well. With a stellar cast, engaging dialogue, and a bumpin’ soundtrack, this movie is not only an entertaining watch but memorable as well. With a predominately black cast, the film tells a fictional, swagged-out tale of real-life black cowboys who once roamed the American West.
The film starts out giving us the backstory of Nat Love (Jonathan Majors) as a child. After witnessing the murder of his parents and receiving a scar from Rufus Buck (Idris Elba), we find Nat as an adult years later on the path to finishing his revenge. Layered through this journey we’re introduced to Mary Fields (Zazie Beets), Bass Reeves (Delroy Lindo), Trudy Smith (Regina King), and Cherokee Bill (Lakeith Stanfield) amongst other notable/familiar faces. That’s about all I’ll reveal as far as the plot goes because how the story unfolds is where so much of the enjoyment lies.
There are way too many beautiful shots to talk about in this film but let’s dig into a couple. In a scene where Cherokee Bill is introduced to us, he slowly glides down the center of the train, center framed while the rest of the gang is blocked by his head. He gives a young boy an alternative telling him to “put the gun down or we’ll kill everyone on this train”. When no movement is made, Bill draws his weapon and simultaneously arms from fellow gang members shoot out of his head in the background. This camera placement and blocking of the actors conveys the danger while showing us in one shot, a stylistic but thoughtful use of framing. This is consistent throughout the film as Samuel uses his camera to show instead of tell.
Samuel takes his framing even further with the use of music and sound. Whether it’s pushing in on a character to the thump of a gun hitting the floor or the kick of a drum in the soundtrack, there is intentionality on full display. Two percussion hits reveal one character behind another in step with a camera move to the right. Samuel’s chucking of conventional framing and attention to the fact that we, the audience, are aware we’re watching a movie, has French New Wave written all over it but shows his creativity in constructing a movie that draws on western genre traits while being refreshingly unique.
Cinematographer, Mihai Malaimare Jr. (The Master, Jojo Rabbit) adds his gift of painting with light to the film. The colors in each scene are vibrant while shifting from cool to warm temperatures with ease. Understanding when to implement the shift in palettes may be missed by the average viewer, but it builds this story to perfection. When a character tells something from their past, warm colors are used to bolster the vulnerability of discussing an old memory.
The dialogue in this film is handled masterfully in its delivery from each main cast member. Silence is used where it’s needed to allow the visuals of the film to speak for themselves. If someone speaks, it's important to the forward progression of the film’s storytelling. Otherwise, nothing needs to be said. The southern drawl or New Orleans accent of characters not only rings authentic but serves as a layer to this delicious cake of a film. Each cast member gives nuance and life to their role. To highlight one individual performance would slight this ensemble of no weak links. The soundtrack of the film fills in the role of an additional, unseen character, telling a part of this tale. Turn on the subtitles and you’ll see the lyrics align perfectly with each scene they are heard in.
At a two hour and ten minute running time, you won’t notice it. The Harder They Fall is engaging from start to finish and if we got more from this world we’d be lucky! Grab your popcorn and turn on Netflix as soon as you can!
Rating: A
