The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is a 2007 Western drama film. The film is directed by Andrew Dominik, with Brad Pitt portraying Jesse James and Casey Affleck as Robert Ford. Filming took place in Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg. Initially intended for a 2006 release, the film was postponed and re-edited for a September 21, 2007 release. While the film contains representations of historical figures, it notably dramatizes the relationship between James and Ford.
Premise
The film was adapted from Ron Hansen's 1983 novel of the same name. It tells the story of Robert Ford - a seemingly insecure young man who has grown up idolizing Jesse James and is often not respected by those around him. The film debunks some of the myths commonly attributed to James, and focuses its attention on Celebrity Worship Syndrome and the distortion of history into legend.
Plot
Introduction, Blue Cut Train Robbery (September 5, 1881)
Jesse James (
Brad Pitt) emerges from a cloud of smoke during the train robbery.
The film starts off with the narrator introducing many facts and legends about the American Old West outlaw, Jesse James (Brad Pitt). Aside from Jesse, the film also tells the story of Robert Ford (Casey Affleck), a seemingly insecure young man who has grown up idolizing Jesse James and is often seen as a coward by those around him. Bob seeks out his hero in the middle of a forest in Blue Cut, Missouri where the James gang is staging a train robbery. Bob makes petty attempts to join the gang with the help of his brother Charley Ford (Sam Rockwell), who has been a recruit for a while now. Jesse allows Bob to take part in the train robbery to try to prove himself, but Jesse's brother Frank James (Sam Shepard) disagrees, saying that Bob hasn't the ingredients to become a member in their gang. The robbery is a success, but ends up being the last robbery committed by the James brothers. Afterward, Frank decides to retire from crime and settle east, leaving his brother to lead the gang by himself. Jesse does not mind Bob's presence at first, and begins to have Bob tag along wherever he goes. Gradually, Bob forms a complex love/hate relationship with Jesse, still admiring him to the point of obsession, but also becoming resentful and somewhat fearful due to Jesse's bullying nature. Jesse begins to acknowledge Bob's awkwardness and unusual fanaticism, and sends him away as a result.
Feud between Dick and Wood, Kentucky (September–October 1881)
The gang members have gone their separate ways after their last train robbery. From this point on, Bob still wants to get involved in the gang as he starts to familiarize himself with the other recruits, who often stay at the farmhouse of Martha Bolton (Alison Elliott), the elder sister of the Ford siblings. Jesse's cousin Wood Hite (Jeremy Renner) also stays there, and often uses Jesse's status to justify his bossiness towards Bob, to which Bob takes a great disliking. Wood apparently has a love interest in Martha, but Dick Liddil (Paul Schneider) frequently gets in his way. Dick, who is perhaps the most highly educated member in the gang, has a reputation for being a womanizer. During Dick and Wood's stay in the latter's home in Kentucky, Dick creates a grudge against Wood by having an affair with his stepmother Sarah Hite (Kailin See). When Wood finds out, he forces Dick into a gunfight. Both fail to kill each other, and Dick is ordered to leave at once, so he returns to his home in Kansas City. The shootout is not shown, but later told by Wood.
Conspiracy (November–December 1881)
In exchange for a partnership, Dick reveals to Bob that he is in cahoots with Jim Cummins, an elusive gang member conspiring to capture Jesse for a bounty. Jim Cummins' character is never actually seen onscreen, but he is referenced multiple times throughout the film. Jesse likes to take to calling in on his old gang, stopping by their homes from one to another, so he decides to pay a visit to Ed Miller (Garret Dillahunt), another former gang member who is seen as thick-headed, shy, and very poor with words. Ed unwittingly gives away information on Cummins' plot. Thus, Jesse lures Ed deep into the woods and kills him, before going on a hunt for Jim. Jesse stops by Kansas City to bring Dick along for the hunt, and the two head to Bill Ford's farm, where Jim usually stays. Bill is married to Jim's sister, and is Bob and Charley's paternal uncle. At the farm, Dick and Jesse are greeted by Albert Ford, Bill's young son. Although Albert does not know where Jim is staying, Jesse brings the child to a barn nearby and violently beats him, further revealing his troubled and destructive mind-state. Dick stops Jesse to prevent further harm to the boy. Confused about his actions, Jesse weeps, and rides away on his horse to regather himself. Dick decides to travel back to Martha's farm, and in doing so conveniently apologizes to the Fords for Jesse.
The Shootout, Dinner Scene (January 1882)
The Ford family (left) and Jesse James (far right) during the dinner scene.
Wood returns from Kentucky to the Bolton farmhouse in a wintery morning. While Dick is still asleep upstairs with Bob and Charley, Wood retells his shooting scrape with Dick to Martha and Wilbur (another Ford brother) in the kitchen. When Wood discovers Dick is upstairs, he rushes up the staircase to the closed bedroom door, and the now-awakened Bob and Dick prepare themselves for the imminent gun battle. After a brief moment of silence, Wood kicks the door open, and the shooting begins. Charley jumps out of a window to dodge the gunfire, spraining his ankle, and Robert cowers in his bed. After a few misses, Wood fires a shot through Dick's thigh, and Dick returns with a shot hitting Wood in his right forearm, knocking his pistol away. Dick, immobilized on the floor by his leg wound, raises his Navy Colt to finish off Wood, only to discover he's out of bullets. Wood calmly picks up his pistol and takes careful aim at Dick's forehead. It is then that Bob fires a bullet through Wood's skull, mortally wounding him before he can pull the trigger and kill Dick. The Fords dump Wood's body in the woods nearby and hatch a plan to conceal this event from Jesse.
Jesse then re-emerges one night to pay a visit to the Fords. During dinner, Jesse notices Bob's anxiety and forces Bob to tell a story. Bob then reluctantly recites a long list of similarities he has with Jesse. Jesse is somewhat disturbed by this, and in return tells a story about a man he once killed for betraying him, explaining how Bob slightly reminds him of that man. Bob, now humiliated, throws a fit and miserably leaves the room, while Jesse and Charley plan a trip to St. Joseph, Missouri. At his home in St. Joseph, Jesse learns of Wood's disappearance.
Talking to the authorities (February–March 1882)
Bob's respect for Jesse begins to diminish as he realizes the nickel books about Jesse he had read during his childhood have little resemblance to the Jesse he now knows. Consequently, Bob talks with Kansas City police commissioner Henry Craig (Michael Parks), saying that he has information regarding Jesse James' whereabouts. To prove his allegiance with the James Gang, Bob urges Craig to arrest Dick Liddil, who has been staying at the Bolton farmhouse while his leg healed. Days after Dick's arrest, Bob attends a party held by the Governor of Missouri, Thomas T. Crittenden (James Carville), celebrating Henry Craig's efforts to finally rid Jackson County of the James Gang. To Bob's surprise, Dick Liddil has been released from jail and is now meeting with the governor. It is revealed that authorities aren't particularly interested in prosecuting Liddil; they're really after Jesse James. To save himself, Liddil has disclosed information about the James Gang's robberies in his confession. Afterward, Bob is brought into a meeting with the governor, and subsequently strikes up a deal with him. Bob is given ten days to capture or assassinate Jesse James for a bounty of $10,000, and is given further instructions by Craig's partner Sheriff James Timberlake (Ted Levine). Meanwhile, on the way back from St. Joseph, a weary Jesse talks to Charley about suicide. Charley then convinces Jesse to take Bob under his wing.
Impending doom (March 25 – April 2, 1882)
By now, Robert and Charley Ford are the only active members in the gang other than Jesse. He keeps a close eye on the brothers, prohibiting them from going anywhere without him. The brothers move in with Jesse to his home in St. Joseph, where they stay with Jesse's wife Zee (Mary-Louise Parker) and their two children. One night in the living room, Jesse invites the Fords to take part in the robbery of the Platte City bank. He re-enacts the way he'll cut the cashier's throat, and demonstrates this by holding a knife to Bob's neck. Jesse then gives a violent monologue about the way he'll execute the cashier and pulls away leaving Bob shaken and visibly in tears. Even though Jesse treats this jokingly at first, laughing in hysterics, he stops his laughter abruptly to embarrass Bob even further. Jesse walks out of the room while the Fords look at each other in concern, overwhelmed with the fear of being killed by him. It has become evident that Jesse has succumbed to derangement— his behavior becoming more erratic and unpredictable with every passing day. From time to time, Jesse even "prophesizes" Bob's betrayal. Jesse is never out of reach from his guns, and has proven this on more than one occasion. Even when he appears to be asleep, he can awaken at the slightest sounds. Given these circumstances, Bob decides killing him would be the safest solution. But even as Jesse appears inhuman in the way he acts, he explains to Bob about how problematic his behavior has become for him, and that he often feels helpless and at times suicidal. As a way to apologize for his actions, Jesse gives Bob a brand new pistol on April Fools' Day.
The Assassination (April 3, 1882)
On the day of the assassination, both Ford brothers wrestle with their task, especially Charley, who has long considered Jesse as one of his closest friends. That morning, Jesse goes out to retrieve the latest newspaper, and on his way to the kitchen for breakfast he throws the paper onto the sitting-room couch. Robert walks past and sees the headline: The Arrest and Confession of Dick Liddel. Terrified, Bob slips the front section of the newspaper under a shawl, then straps on his gun holster before sitting down in the kitchen for breakfast. Immediately, Jesse walks back to the sitting-room and discovers the hidden section of the newspaper. He sits back down again to stir his coffee while he reads, learning of Dick's confession. Jesse glares at Bob, and asks why this matter hadn't been reported to him. Bob excuses himself and retreats to the sitting-room rocking chair, panic-stricken, and Charley soon follows him to put on his holster. Jesse walks in to see if the two are ready for the trip to Platte City. The Fords prepare for the worst, but it appears Jesse is withholding his wrath due to the presence of his wife and children. Instead of scolding the Fords, he walks over to the window and gazes outside, withdrawn and hollow. He watches his young daughter sing peacefully in the distance. The morning wind howls faintly in the background, and all is calm, and the Fords quietly observe Jesse— who is in utter bliss, if only for once in his long, exhausting life. After some silent contemplation, seemingly knowing his time has come and accepting it, Jesse takes off his gun belt and lays it on the couch, as a final gesture to the boys, as he appears to surrender in the form of an indirect suicide. For the first time in his life, Bob sees Jesse gunless, and the Fords watch in bewilderment while Jesse turns around and stares at the portrait of a horse above the mantle, mouthing his final words: "Don't that picture look dusty?" As if assembling his perfect death, Jesse carefully sets up a chair under the portrait and climbs on top of it with a feather duster in one hand, making himself even more vulnerable and helpless. The Fords take this opportunity to draw their guns, and Bob, the swifter one, cocks his brand new revolver and fires a bullet into Jesse's head, killing him instantly, and the outlaw shakes the house as he plummets to the floor. Zee rushes to the living room, distraught to find her husband bloodied and lifeless. When she tearfully questions Bob, he denies doing or knowing anything before Charley pulls him out of the house, declaring it an "accident". The Fords run down to the telegraph office in order to wire the governor about the news. A brief montage then follows, describing what is to happen to the body of Jesse James.
Aftermath, Creede (1883–1892)
After the assassination, the Fords become celebrities and end up in a theater show in Manhattan, re-enacting the assassination night after night with Bob playing himself, and Charley as Jesse James. It seems, even to Charley, that Bob shows no remorse for killing Jesse. In contrast, Charley becomes tormented by the assassination. His cheerfulness that so well identified his humanity is unnoticeable in his voice anymore, and his stage performance only keeps reminding him of the man they've shamefully betrayed. Charley attempts to write letters to Zee James, asking for her forgiveness, but would never actually send them in fear of causing more pain to the grieving widow. Overwhelmed with despair and terminally ill from tuberculosis, Charley commits suicide by shooting himself in the heart in the May of 1884.
After Charley's death, something begins to strike Bob. Instead of Jesse being remembered as a criminal and a murderer, he is now idealized as a Robin Hood-like hero. Bob on the other hand is openly shunned by the public and is branded a cowardly traitor, and threats from strangers are almost a daily occurrence. At times of anger, Bob dreams of visiting the families of Jesse James' victims, hoping to remind himself that what he did was not in vain, but for the benefit of the people. In a constant struggle to liberate himself from his ever-growing guilt, Bob gives in to alcoholism.
Ten years have passed since Jesse's assassination. Bob, as unlikely as it may seem, has prospered over the past decade, and now acquires a steady income working as a saloonkeeper in the small mining town of Creede, Colorado, still uncertain on what fate awaits him. He becomes romantically involved with a beautiful woman named Dorothy Evans (Zooey Deschanel), who would have long conversations with Bob in hopes of providing comfort to him. In the closing moments of the film, Bob is sought out and murdered by a man named Edward O'Kelley, who has developed a strong hatred towards Bob over the years. At the same time, the narrator ends the film with an epilogue, recounting that O'Kelley would later be pardoned, and that in contrast to Jesse James, Robert Ford would achieve no fame after his death.
Main cast
Gang
- Brad Pitt as Jesse James, the notorious outlaw of Missouri. Although violent in nature, ferocious and cunning when he is off with his gang, Jesse is always calm and protective when around his family, refusing to let his children know about his criminal life. Jesse is weathered by life and is exhausted from being chased by the law, which has been pursuing him for well over a decade. His sheer paranoia has driven him to the brink of insanity, and it has become increasingly difficult for him to trust those who are closest to him, in fear that they might turn against him. For this reason he secretly desires to live a quieter life and even contemplates suicide every so often, but his reputation hangs in the balance, and there is no easy way out.
- Casey Affleck as Robert "Bob" Ford, a young man not long out of his teens, who is eager to make a name for himself. Born to a large family, Bob is the youngest of seven children, and is understandably looked down upon and bullied for being the weak and cowardly person of the household. Bob would always turn to Jesse James as an ambiguous source of pride or inspiration. Wanting to meet his hero in person, he ventures out and asks for Jesse's approval. But after their relationship progressively turns sour, Bob no longer sees his idol as the saint he once did. And perhaps compelled by his own negligence and naiveté, Bob decides to kill Jesse, without thinking about the repercussions such an act can cause.
- Sam Rockwell as Charley Ford, the cheerful and often dumbfounded older brother of Bob Ford, who attempts to get his younger brother the acceptance he desperately yearns for. After much pleading, Charley finally convinces Jesse to take Bob in under his wing, only to learn that Bob has other motives in mind. Struck with deep regret, Charley accompanies Bob during the assassination, ultimately leading both brothers to certain doom.
- Paul Schneider as Dick Liddil, the most promiscuous member in the gang. Dick is bursting with arrogance, and always eloquent in his speech and delivery, making him one of the more charming characters in the film. Liddil has an ability to lie his way out of most problems, and Wood Hite deeply envies his ability to live a carefree life as a lothario.
- Jeremy Renner as Wood Hite, the younger cousin of Frank and Jesse James. Hite uses his kinship with the James family as a method to intimidate others, especially Bob. Wood later on develops a feud with Dick Liddil, which eventually causes a disastrous chain reaction.
- Sam Shepard as Frank James, the older brother of Jesse James, who is described as a stern and very constrained man. Although only aged 38, his life as bandit has influenced his appearance to that of a 50-year-old. The brothers hardly ever communicate with each other, if so only with melancholic gazes or a few abrupt words. Frank leaves Jesse early to escape the monotony of the crime life.
- Garret Dillahunt as Ed Miller, a lonesome, dimwitted outlaw who is left with close to nothing after the James Gang disbanded. Jesse pays him an unexpected visit in the winter of 1881, and Ed reveals too much about a conspiracy involving Jesse's capture, driving Jesse to a reckless hunt for those involved.
Women
- Mary-Louise Parker as Zerelda "Zee" James, the wife of Jesse James. Zee is in constant concern for her husband's well-being, and is equally protective and caring about their children.
- Zooey Deschanel as Dorothy Evans, a young woman that Robert Ford confides in during the last months of his life in Creede, Colorado. Knowing that she can sing and attract customers, Bob hires her for his nightclub, and even sparks up a romantic relationship with her. Until his death, Dorothy remains the only person that Bob has spoken revealingly to about his motives for killing Jesse. The character of Dorothy Evans is largely fictionalized.
- Alison Elliott as Martha Bolton, the widowed elder sister of Robert and Charles Ford. Her farmhouse serves as a place where members of the James Gang would frequent when in need of shelter, or a place to hide out. Dick Liddil and Wood Hite attempt to win her affections.
- Kailin See as Sarah Hite, the stepmother of Wood Hite. Her affair with Dick Liddil causes the two men's friendship to sever, resulting in deadly consequences.
Authorities
- James Carville as Thomas T. Crittenden, the Governor of Missouri. Crittenden is growing increasingly tired of the James Gang's antics, and thus hires Bob Ford to capture or assassinate Jesse James for the $10,000 bounty.
- Michael Parks as Henry Craig, a local police commissioner who has sworn to eradicate the James Gang from the state of Missouri.
- Ted Levine as Sheriff James Timberlake, a local sheriff who warns Bob to use caution during his assignment.
Other
Production
This working engine and train at Fort Edmonton Park was featured in the film
In March 2004, Warner Bros. and Plan B Entertainment acquired feature film rights to Hansen's 1983 novel The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. Andrew Dominik was hired to direct and write the film adaptation, with Pitt being eyed to portray Jesse James.[2] The role of Ford eventually was between Affleck and Shia LaBeouf; Affleck was cast because it was felt that LaBeouf was too young. Bill Clinton's presidential campaign strategist James Carville was selected to play the Governor of Missouri.
[3] By January 2005, Pitt was cast in the role,[4] and filming began on August 29, 2005 in Calgary.[5] Filming also took place in other parts of Alberta, including McKinnon Flats, Heritage Park, the Fairmont Palliser Hotel, the Kananaskis area, several private ranches[6] and the historical Fort Edmonton Park.[6] The historical town of Creede, Colorado was recreated at a cost of $1 million near Goat Creek in Alberta.[7] Filming also took place in Winnipeg in the city's historic Exchange District; the Burton Cummings Theatre (formerly known as The Walker Theatre) and the Pantages Playhouse Theatre,[8] and concluded in December 2005.[7]
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford was initially edited by director Dominik to be "a dark, contemplative examination of fame and infamy,"[citation needed] similar to the style of director Terrence Malick. The studio opposed Dominik's approach, preferring less contemplation and more action. One version of the film had a running time of more than three hours. Pitt and Ridley Scott, producers of the film, and editors Dylan Tichenor (who left the production early to cut There Will Be Blood, and was replaced with editor Curtiss Clayton, who ultimately finished the production) and Michael Kahn (who was brought in for several weeks as the studio's "go to" editor), collaborated to assemble and test different versions, which did not receive strong scores from test audiences. Despite the negative response, the audiences considered the performances by Pitt and Affleck to be some of their careers' best.[9] Brad Pitt had it written into his contract that the studio could not change the name of the film.[10]
Cinematography
Cinematographer
Roger Deakins used palettes of brown and black to produce a bleak yet oneiric quality to the film, reminiscent of the paintings of
Andrew Wyeth.
[11]
An exterior shot of
Creede, Colorado from a distance. Notice the color diffraction around the edges, almost replicating the look of old photographs.
One of the most memorable sequences of the film is the scene of a train robbery at night time. Cinematographer Roger Deakins used various cinematographic techniques to give the train more of a presence when it was in pitch darkness. The idea was to generate a heavy sense of atmosphere using only the lanterns held up by the outlaws and the 5K Par light mounted on the front of the train.[12]
In order to enhance the blacks, Deakins did a slight bleach bypass on the negative, which was especially important in terms of rendering detail.[13]
Some scenes in the film have a blurred effect around the borders of the frame, which were achieved by taking old wide-angle lenses and mounting them onto the front several cameras (Arri Macros in this case). Deakins claimed to have pioneered this technique, naming these combinations of lenses "Deakinizers", which created the effect of vignetting and slight color diffraction around the edges. Deakins recalls:[14]
- "Most of those shots were used for transitional moments, and the idea was to create the feeling of an old-time camera. We weren’t trying to be nostalgic, but we wanted those shots to be evocative. The idea sprang from an old photograph Andrew [Dominik] liked, and we did a lot of tests to mimic the look of the photo. Andrew had a whole lot of photographic references for the look of the movie, mainly the work of still photographers, but also images clipped from magazines, stills from Days of Heaven, and even Polaroids taken on location that looked interesting or unusual. He hung all of them up in the long corridor of the production office. That was a wonderful idea, because every day we'd all pass by [images] that immediately conveyed the tone of the movie he wanted to make."
Several time-lapse footages appear throughout the film, which were shot by Steadicam operator Damon Moreau. According to Deakins, Moreau would be sent out to do these shots when the crew wasn't ready to shoot a scene yet.[15] Often accompanied by the film's melancholic score, these time-lapse sequences remind the audience of the passing time, developing an uneasiness that eventually builds up to the inevitable yet unsettling climax.
Music
The music for the movie was composed by Australian musicians Nick Cave and Warren Ellis. Nick Cave has a small part in the film, playing a musician singing a rendition of the ballad "Jesse James", whose verses are strongly reminiscent of the title of the movie.
Release
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford was originally slated for a September 15, 2006 release.[16] The release date was postponed to February 2007 at first,[17] but ultimately set for a September 21, 2007 release,[18] almost two years after filming was completed.[9]
The film opened in limited release on September 21, 2007, in 5 theaters and grossed $147,812 in its opening weekend, an average of $29,256 per theater.[19] The film has a total gross of less than $4 million.
Warner Home Video released the film on DVD on February 5, 2008[20] in the US, and on March 31 in the UK.
Reception
Critical reaction
As of December 7, 2007 on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film received a 75 percent fresh rating from 142 reviews and 58 percent from 31 the Cream of the Crop .[21] On Metacritic, the film had an average score of 68 out of 100, based on 31 reviews.[22]
Brian Tallerico of UGO gave the film an "A" and said that it is "the best western since Unforgiven." Tallerico also said, "Stunning visuals, award-worthy performances, and a script that takes incredibly rewarding risks, Jesse James is a masterpiece and one of the best films of the year."[23] Kurt Loder of MTV said, "If I were inclined to wheel out clichés like 'Oscar-worthy', I'd certainly wheel them out in support of this movie, on several counts."[24] Richard Roeper on the television show Ebert & Roeper said, "If you love classic and stylish mood Westerns such as McCabe and Mrs. Miller and The Long Riders, this is your film."[25] The Star-Ledger film critic Stephen Whitty gave the film four stars and called it an "epic film that's part literary treatise, part mournful ballad, and completely a portrait of our world, as seen in a distant mirror." Whitty also said that the film is "far superior" and "truer to its own world" than 3:10 to Yuma.[26] Josh Rosenblatt of The Austin Chronicle gave the film 3½ stars and said the film "grabs on to many of the classic tropes of the Western — the meandering passage of time, the imposing landscapes, the abiding loneliness, the casual violence — and sets about mapping their furthest edges."[27]
Film critic Emanuel Levy gave the film an "A" and wrote, "Alongside Joel and Ethan Coen's No Country for Old Men, which is a Western in disguise, or rather a modern Western, Assassination of Jesse James is the second masterpiece of the season." Levy also wrote, "Like Bonnie & Clyde, Dominik's seminal Western is a brilliant, poetic saga of America's legendary criminal as well as meditative deconstruction of our culture's most persistent issues: link of crime and fame, myths of heroism and obsession with celebrity."[28] Lewis Beale of Film Journal International said "Impeccably shot, cast and directed, this is a truly impressive film from sophomore writer-director Andrew Dominik...but suffers from an unfortunate case of elephantiasis." Beale said Affleck is "outstanding in a breakout performance" and said Pitt is "scary and charismatic." Beale wrote, "The director seems so in love with his languorous pacing, he’s incapable of cutting the five or ten seconds in any number of scenes that could have given the film a more manageable running time. In the scheme of things, however, this amounts to little more than a quibble." Beale said that ultimately, the film is "a fascinating, literary-based work that succeeds as both art and genre film."[29]
British critic Mark Kermode named the film as his best of 2007 in his end-of-year review on Simon Mayo's BBC radio programme.[citation needed]
Many critics opined that the film is too long. Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter said that the relationship between Pitt and Affleck "gets smothered in pointlessly long takes, repetitive scenes, grim Western landscapes and mumbled, heavily accented dialogue."[30] Los Angeles Daily News critic Bob Strauss gave the film 2½ stars out of 4 and said, "To put it most bluntly, the thing is just too long and too slow." Strauss also said, "Every element of this Western is beautifully rendered. So why is it a chore to sit through?"[31] Pam Grady of Reel.com gave the film 2 stars out of 4 and said, "The movie is merely a long, empty exercise in style."[32] Stephanie Zacharek of Salon.com said that the film "represents a breakthrough in the moviegoing experience. It may be the first time we've been asked to watch a book on tape."[33]
Jesse James' descendants have effusively praised the film, specifically singling out Affleck and Pitt for their performances.[34]
Top ten lists
The film appeared on many critics' top ten lists of the best films of 2007.[35]
- 1st - Mark Kermode, BBC Radio 5 Live
- 1st - Peter Vonder Haar, Film Threat
- 1st - Ray Bennett, The Hollywood Reporter
- 1st - Matt Cale, Ruthless Reviews[36]
- 2nd - Dennis Harvey, Variety
- 3rd - Claudia Puig, USA Today
- 3rd - Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle
- 4th - Tom Charity, CNN[37]
- 4th - Jack Mathews, New York Daily News
- 4th - Scott Tobias, The A.V. Club
- 5th - Empire magazine
- 5th - Keith Phipps, The A.V. Club
- 5th - Tasha Robinson, The A.V. Club
- 6th - Scott Foundas, LA Weekly
- 6th - Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
- 7th - Sight & Sound magazine
- 9th - Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
- 9th - Nick Schager, Slant Magazine
- 9th - Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune
- 10th - J. Hoberman, The Village Voice
Historical accuracy
The film is considered as one of the most historically accurate portrayals of Jesse James and Robert Ford, even by James' descendants, who found both performances more realistic and true to history than the dozens that came before them.[38]
Awards and nominations
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford was identified by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures as one of the top 10 films of 2007. The board also named Affleck as Best Supporting Actor in the film.[39] The San Francisco Film Critics Circle named The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford as the Best Picture of 2007. The circle also awarded Affleck as best supporting actor for the film. Affleck was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture for the 65th Golden Globe Awards.[40]
The film received two Academy Award nominations for the 80th Academy Awards. Affleck was nominated for Best Supporting Actor and Roger Deakins was nominated for Best Cinematography.[41]
References
External links
