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Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Slow West

Movie Review: “Slow West”

Director and writer John Maclean’s first feature film “Slow West” follows a relaxed pace, keeping true to its title. But despite the minimal dialogue, sparse settings and slow plot development, the film manages to hold the audience’s attention through the warm and unconventional relationship of naïve 16-year-old Jay Cavendish and gruff desperado Silas Selleck.

Jay, played by Kodi Smit-Mcphee (“The Road”), embarks on a journey from Scotland to America to pursue Rose Ross, the girl he loves. Rose, played by Caren Pistorius (“The Most Fun You Can Have Dying”), fled Scotland with her father after the state placed a $2,000 bounty on their heads, a fact unbeknownst to Jay. His trip turns into an expedition when he crosses paths with Silas, a character played by Michael Fassbender (“12 Years a Slave”), who offers to guide Jay westward for a fee.

Silas describes himself as a ‘man beyond the law,’ and initially seems only to be interested in Jay because of the bounty on Rose’s head. However, their relationship grows, and Silas becomes a brother figure and mentor to Jay, teaching him how to shave with a knife and how to defend himself.

A gang pursues the duo throughout the film and the chase adds intensity to the film. Payne, played by Ben Mendelsohn (“The Dark Knight Rises”), leads the gang that hopes to capture Rose in order to obtain the $2,000 bounty. Tension builds between Jay, Silas and the gang until the final scene when both groups find Rose and battle to the finish.

All of the characters serve a vital role in the film, and viewers will be challenged to pinpoint one single star. Smit-Mcphee is convincing in his most mature role to date, making it hard to believe this actor played the whiny, vulnerable boy in “The Road.” Through the course of the film, he sheds his innocence and learns that a little violence is sometimes necessary to survive out in the west. Meanwhile, Fassbender exudes coolness as the strong, silent Silas who seems to always have a cigar hanging out of his mouth. Yet he too sheds this cold skin, revealing a tenderness and paternal instinct at the end of the film.

The infrequent dry, dark humor in the film lightened the overall grim tone of the plot. In one scene, when a bullet hits a salt shaker on a shelf and the salt spills into a character’s open wound, the audience can’t help but laugh at the character’s poor luck.

The depiction of innocent, young love acts as another strength of the film. Through flashbacks, the audience pieces together the relationship between Jay and Rose. Rose is Jay’s first love, and he abandons everything—his family, home and birthright—to pursue her. Although Jay’s efforts seem excessive and misguided, his determination touches the audience. Toward the end of the film, the audience learns that Rose has stopped loving Jay, highlighting the rose-colored lens Jay used when remembering her. Jay and Rose have grown a lot since their last contact, and this causes a disconnect between the two.

The film’s ending felt abrupt and left an unsatisfactory taste because the director failed to bring together his untied, loose ends. But other than the movie’s lackluster conclusion, “Slow West” acts as a refreshing take on the Western genre.

Grade: A-

“Slow West” (R, 84 min) is now playing at AFI Silver.

amaier@theeagleonline.com


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