Martin Scorsese is technically the best director working today. His films are made with precision and skill. Unfortunately his recent films also come with bloat.
The running length is an unfortunate impediment to the Killers of the Flower Moon. Primarily made for Apple TV, maybe Scorsese should had made a mini series rather than an overlong movie.
Based on a factual book by David Grann. Scorsese who loves westerns has essentially made one set in the early 20th century. It is all about greed and the murder of the Osage people of Oklahoma.
William Hale (Robert De Niro) is the local political boss who has hatched a scheme to steal the oil rich reservation land from the Osage tribe. He appears to be a trusted friend of the Osage nation.
Ernest Burkhart (Leonardo DiCaprio) was his dim nephew. Hale got him married to an Osage woman Mollie Burkhart (Lily Gladstone.) Primarily to inherit her oil rights after her death. Hale and Burkhart slowly poison her with insulin.
Hale ordered the deaths of other members of Mollie's family so the oil rights go to her. Hale conspired to stop any investigation until Washington sends in one of their own investigators to examine the spate of deaths.
This is a story that needed to be told. It could had been done with 60 minutes easily lopped off.
There is no doubt to me that the film has problems. It is all De Niro and DiCaprio. The Osage people are cyphers. Mollie is an interesting character but is then sidelined as she wastes away.
It needed a perspective of one Osage tribe member leading the fight against Hale. That they knew what he was up to. That was missing.
The running length is an unfortunate impediment to the Killers of the Flower Moon. Primarily made for Apple TV, maybe Scorsese should had made a mini series rather than an overlong movie.
Based on a factual book by David Grann. Scorsese who loves westerns has essentially made one set in the early 20th century. It is all about greed and the murder of the Osage people of Oklahoma.
William Hale (Robert De Niro) is the local political boss who has hatched a scheme to steal the oil rich reservation land from the Osage tribe. He appears to be a trusted friend of the Osage nation.
Ernest Burkhart (Leonardo DiCaprio) was his dim nephew. Hale got him married to an Osage woman Mollie Burkhart (Lily Gladstone.) Primarily to inherit her oil rights after her death. Hale and Burkhart slowly poison her with insulin.
Hale ordered the deaths of other members of Mollie's family so the oil rights go to her. Hale conspired to stop any investigation until Washington sends in one of their own investigators to examine the spate of deaths.
This is a story that needed to be told. It could had been done with 60 minutes easily lopped off.
There is no doubt to me that the film has problems. It is all De Niro and DiCaprio. The Osage people are cyphers. Mollie is an interesting character but is then sidelined as she wastes away.
It needed a perspective of one Osage tribe member leading the fight against Hale. That they knew what he was up to. That was missing.
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