Starring: James Franco, Brendan Gleeson, Zoe Kazan, Liam Neeson, Tim Blake Nelson, Tom Waits
Review: The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is an anthology of six short films that take place in 19th-century post-Civil War era during the settling of the Old West. The film comes out of the gate strong with Tim Blake Nelson playing the exuberant, confident gunslinger, Buster Scruggs. The opening act is brimming with fun in the form of musical numbers and well-choreographed shootouts. Unfortunately, the rest of the film fell largely flat after its early fireworks. I really wanted to like this film, and the trailer had me sold, but I was largely disappointed. There are bright spots here and there. James Franco's cowboy in the second act titled, "Near Algodones," is an amusing and intriguing character. Zoe Kazan also does a fantastic job as Alice Longabaugh in "The Gal Who Got Rattled." I will give the Coen Brothers credit as the film is shot beautifully,. The scenery of the mountain valley in "All Gold Canyon" is particularly stunning. Despite all of this, I was more or less bored throughout. Some of the stories dragged on way too long, and others ended abruptly just as they were on the verge of becoming interesting. While there is some comedy sprinkled in, the common denominator in this film's sets is the inevitability of death. Some of the grim nature of this film is purely ironic, while other parts are just plain sad. Critics have raved about this film, but I just couldn't bring myself to get much enjoyment out of it. By all means, if you're a fan of the Coen Brothers, give this film a chance. Perhaps, you will appreciate this film in a way that I couldn't.
Fun Fact: The poker hand that Buster Scruggs refuses to play, two pair aces and eights, is infamously known as the "dead man's hand" as it was reportedly the hand drawn to Wild Bill Hickok before he was shot and killed.