Earlier in his brilliant career, Martin Scorsese was the master of showing
the flashy pomposity of evil. In his waning years, he’s honed in on the
banality of it, and there are few better examples than his new adaptation of the
David Grann bestseller, Killers of the Flower Moon.
It’s a mostly faithful adaptation (to the book, and by proxy, the purported
truth) though it should come as no surprise Scorsese applies his scalpel to the
criminals and their activity whereas Grann’s book was more focused on the FBI
investigation that uncovered the massive conspiracy surrounding the murders of
the Osage tribe in 1920s Oklahoma. Central to it all, and the film, is the
plight of Mollie Burkhart (an amazing Lily Gladstone) who unwittingly marries
Ernest (a feckless Leonardo DiCaprio), the patsy nephew of criminal kingpin
William Hale (Robert DeNiro) who has been plotting against the Osage for years
to steal headrights to their oil fortunes. DeNiro plays Hale as a doting
grandfatherly overlord and friend to the Osage, wise and comforting, quiet and
pleading even in his rage. Meanwhile DiCaprio is cluelessly slimy as Ernest,
who even in all his wrongheadedness still honestly believes he loves Mollie on
some level in his own highly dysfunctional way. The two plotting men prod and
joke with each other, as if this is all in a day’s business, and with the
carnival of miscreants who do their dirty work, while the law (when not turning
a blind eye) apply a cold calculus to the proceedings as light is finally shown
on the seedy, white, festering underbelly of the Osage Nation.
One of the most mind-blowing things about the violent crimes committed
against the Osage is that there were already institutionalized mechanics in
place that facilitated the continued oppression and mistreatment of the Osage.
The laws (like those that insisted on white guardians to monitor how the Osage
spent their money) already allowed people like Hale unfair access to their
fortunes. But people like Hale were so greedy and racist, that wasn’t enough
for them. They intermarried and murdered the Osage in systemic fashion, like
marauding invaders of medieval times laying unjust claims to foreign thrones,
so as to put themselves in place to inherit the fortunes.
Like any great film, the devil is in the details. Scorsese effectively
displays the visions of the Osage women as death approaches (those owls!) and
there are plenty of nods to cinematic classics in some of the compositions
where shots of murdered people lying in water or oil harken to the opening
montage depicting the underside of Vienna in The Third Man. The film’s
heart surely lies with Mollie, and her offerings and meditations in the
haunting sunlight as she mourns the deaths of family members are poetic and
elegiac.
The production design, costumes, music score (accompanied by wonderful
period-piece music ala the Scorsese produced TV crime drama, Boardwalk
Empire), editing, cinematography and performances are all orchestrated by
Scorsese in the rarefied space of true cinematic greatness. Yes, the 3.5-hour
film plods, though it’s never not involving, and one could argue it would be better
digested over multiple nights, like so many enjoyed Scorsese’s previous
plodding but enthralling film, The Irishman. But, man, it was great to
see this type of finely crafted stuff on the big screen. Yes, there are a few
false notes, but overall, this epic tragedy sings…quietly, devastatingly.
The Schleicher Spin 
Excellent review of a masterful epic film that for me may be the best film of the year.
It’s definitely up there for me, too.
My top 3 right now would be Oppenheimer, Past Lives, and this.
Not boring at all for me. You’ve said all about this great motion picture, but I have to add the wonderfull conclusion that mixed mythology and real facts. When the real Marty comes to the mike, I couldn’t retain my tears.
I’m still not sure how I feel about that closing coda…it was an interesting choice. I found the bookends of the Osage ceremonies powerful.
I think it’s a response to the famous Ford sentence “imprint the legend”. The radio show is telling the legend of the FBI while a real Scorsese get on stage to bring back the reality at the center of the mythology. I found it powerfull.
Oh, that’s interesting…and that’s a good explanation. It really took me out of the film…but I guess that was the point…and yes, Scorsese reading the line about the fate of Mollie (and lack of mention of the crimes that haunted her entire life) was powerful.
The Robbie Robertson score was haunting beyond belief (RIP). The cinematography was beautiful. Lily Gladstone was a revelation. That being said, for me, this needed much tighter editing, kinda like The Irishman. This felt like staying at the party too long. In fact, this movie goes on so long that DiCaprio stops acting and starts doing an impression of Billy Bob Thornton in SLING BLADE. And I couldn’t get past its aloof nature. I never really felt involved in the story. The aloofness wasn’t as bad as, say, ASTEROID CITY (which I finally saw and was very, VERY disappointed in), but I wish I could’ve been more into the characters rather than feeling like I was on the outside looking in the whole time.
I can see how one could walk away feeling like that. The aloofness was an interesting spin but then I felt Scorsese kept trying to ground the picture with Lily Gladstone…which was a smart move because she OWNED that movie. I’m still reeling from her performance…how nuanced and quietly powerful it was.
The trailer is so beautiful and tragic. I have not gone to see the film because much like violence against black in film, I am not up to watching the violence against First Nation Osage. I may be able to watch in sections when on Apple TV +.
I hear you. It’s a lot to take in emotionally, and one needs to be prepared and give themselves time and space (which streaming it in chunks could be provide).