The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Trailer
Robert Ford, who's idolized Jesse James since childhood, tries hard to join the reforming gang of the Missouri outlaw, but gradually becomes resentful of the bandit leader. When he senses an opportunity to kill Jesse, he guns him down, but his actions backfire...
As the coward Robert Ford, Casey Affleck is a revelation. Nothing you have seen from him will prepare you for his brilliant work as the childlike young man who goes on to be the downfall of his hero.
Affleck manages to strike so many right notes, that by the end of the film, it is easy to forget what a loathsome toady he was at film's start, and you cannot help but feel real pain as Ford's inevitably sad fate unravels before our eyes.
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is the story...of the moment in America when myth was murdered by mere celebrity and we were left, perhaps forever, with only the latter's meager consolations.
It's a view of the West beyond the myth that's worth enduring, if not relishing.
Matt's Movie Reviews
July 06, 2010
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is an engrossing and hypnotic western that places a heavy emphasis on atmosphere, character and reality.
Moseying along for 160 minutes, this revisionist western by writer-director Andrew Dominik makes a wan attempt to present the Jesse James legend as the dawn of celebrity culture in America.
Awesome splendor and a striking essay on celebrity reward those who brave the 2 1/2-hour run time.
Suite101.com
September 25, 2010
Examining the transient nature of memories and mythmaking, "Coward" understands there are as many crooked legacies in high definition, as there were 130 years ago in dog-eared dime-store paperbacks and ghoulish stage productions.
Writer-director Andrew Dominik takes his time with the story, but his languorous pacing allows tension to build -- and permits the actors, Affleck in particular, to add nuance and depth to characters who'll seem familiar only at first glance.
