October 30, 2023 · Watch the official trailer
For decades, Martin Scorsese has been obsessed with the dichotomy between good and evil and the ways that he meticulously draws this out for audiences with slow-burn drama is quite unlike any other filmmaker.
It’s not just that he’s an auteur with a singular vision whose ability to perfectly capture a story in bold, cinematic ways that makes him one of, if not the greatest director of all time, but it’s in the unwavering consistency of his cinema from acting performances to production design and editing.
Without question, Scorsese is an absolute master at his art and with each passing film that could be his last, it’s important to remember just how spectacular and singular his vision is.
This is certainly the case with his latest film, yet another towering cinematic achievement.
“Killers of the Flower Moon,” based on a true story and the non-fiction book of the same name by David Grann, is an elongated, wildly stoic drama that follows a World War I veteran who comes to live on his uncle’s land in the Osage territories of 1920s Oklahoma only to fall in love with one of the local women and find himself embroiled in the middle of a plot to murder her family for oil rights.
Scorsese always gets the absolute best from his actors and in his sixth collaboration with Leonardo DiCaprio, “Flower Moon” has another remarkable turn from the veteran leading man who gruffs up his voice and demeanor just enough to harden his natural charm and charisma, making Ernest the perfect centerpiece of Scorsese’s film.
It’s clear throughout the performance that DiCaprio’s Ernest is often lost and unsure of himself, relying on his uncle and wife to guide his motives and actions. His almost blind devotion to both puts him in the middle of a quandary deciding what’s truly worth fighting for.
His chemistry opposite Lily Gladstone, while quiet, is intense and electric and it’s in part to his credit, but largely due to the magnetic turn from Gladstone, who in a very intentional way takes charge both of Mollie’s man and of the scenes between the two. It’s rare to have viewers’ gaze wander away from DiCaprio for such long times in movies, but Gladstone gives such a quietly audacious effort that it’s impossible not to take note.
While it seems unfathomable that Scorsese would not put longtime collaborator Robert DeNiro in a film that could be his final turn in the director’s chair, there is a true need for his presence throughout the film and “Flower Moon” takes advantage of every aspect of DeNiro’s innate ability to be both charming and underhanded at the same time with the ability to radiate warmth, understanding, and care on his face while readying the knife to stab someone in the back.
The mentor relationship between uncle and nephew works fantastically in “Flower Moon” as DiCaprio and DeNiro can emote so much more than what is going on within a scene and Scorsese’s mastery of the camera allows this to come alive in dynamic ways.
Although it is being released theatrically through Paramount, “Flower Moon” is the largest endeavor in the history of Apple as a studio and has always been projected to be its signature awards season player.
The film is certain to receive any number of nominations this awards season from best picture and director to acting nods for all three leading performances with Gladstone being a seemingly unstoppable frontrunner for best supporting actress as well as a slew of technical nominations.
More casual moviegoers may scoff at the film’s nearly three-and-a-half hour run time which feels especially languid in the first hour as Scorsese creates the world for which the violence and intrigue is to come.
This is a gangster movie where the villains aren’t always so clear, but “Flower Moon” has that same mentality in the latter stages of the film. Audiences that are resilient and can stay engage during the character development and world building at the beginning will be massively rewarded once things start to escalate.
It’s understandable that not every cinephile will want to make a trek to theaters for a film this long, especially when “Oppenheimer” has a much brisker pace.
Though whether it’s on the big screen or through Apple TV+ later in the holiday season, “Killers of the Flower Moon” is another absolute Scorsese masterpiece that is a can’t miss film.
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