Review: Lawless (2012)

LaBeouf and Hardy as bootlegging brothers.

Directed by John Hillcoat
Produced by Michael Benaroya, Megan Ellison, Lucy Fisher, and Douglas Wick
Written by Nick Cave (screenplay); Matt Bondurant (book)
Starring Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, and Guy Pearce

***

Hillcoat's new film tells the story of the infamous bootlegging Bondurant brothers: Jack (LaBeouf), Forrest (Hardy), and Howard (Clarke). The year is 1931, and the boys are quite successful at moonshining in Franklin County, Virginia. Being the eldest, Forrest and Howard run the business, while Jack drives the merchandise. Everything changes when Deputy Charlie Rakes (Pearce) moves in from the city and tries to intimidate them. The two oldest brothers stand up to him, which sparks a war that soon drags Jack into the fight. In the midst of this battle, Forrest and Jack find love interests in Maggie Beauford (Chastain), a former dancer from the city, and Bertha Minnix (Wasikowska), the preacher's daughter. Blood is repeatedly shed on both sides, and the three brothers must take a stand to bring down Rakes once and for all.

This film plays like a potboiler concerned with characters, but it doesn't allow them to shine. Many of the scenes are dry and lifeless. In terms of plot, the narrative is divided between Forrest and Jack, as both are kicked down again and again by the law. There's no clear focus on where this film wants to go, but a resolution manages to come out of all this violence. If this is a faithful adaptation (I haven't read the book.), then this story probably works much better in the literary format. Still, the film contains solid performances from the innocent LaBeouf and the stoic Hardy, and Pearce and Oldman (as gangster Floyd Banner) give scenery-chewing performances in their small roles. Though the rest of the cast is good, they don't have much to do in their underwritten parts. It may seem like I'm putting the film down, but it's still got a lot to offer. Beautifully shot and wonderfully crafted, this could be a film that only improves with additional viewings. For now, I'd recommend it with the note that it's a slight letdown and might not be for everybody.

Oscar Potential: Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design

LAWLESS

LAWLESS
Written by Nick Cave
Directed by John Hillcoat
Starring Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Jessica Chastain, Mia Wasikowska and Guy Pearce

Maggie: Ain’t that just like you, to believe your own goddamn legend?

LAWLESS, John Hillcoat’s follow up to the quiet and haunting post-apocalyptic contemplation, THE ROAD, is in many ways, the direct opposite of that film. While it is often just as visually interesting, it is a much louder film than his last. LAWLESS oscillates between the kind of quiet moments one expects from a prohibition-era period piece and the kind of roaring gunfire one expects from a mobster film from the same period. It boasts an unbelievable cast of actors but sadly even they cannot breathe life into this surprisingly drab film. For all its pedigree, LAWLESS is simply far from flawless.

Based on the true account of the Bondurant brothers, as chronicled by descendant, Matt Bondurant, in his novel, “The Wettest County in the World”, and adapted by singer/songwriter, Nick Cave, LAWLESS focuses most of its attention on the runt of the litter, Jack. Jack is played played by the guy who coincidentally also has the most to prove in this project, Shia LaBeouf, who steps away from big budget blockbusters and toward bigger budget indies instead. To make this point abundantly clear, which Hillcoat does again and again with many of the film’s failed attempts at subtlety, LAWLESS opens with a young Jack being taunted by his older brothers as he struggles to catch the runt of a pig litter on their farm. LaBeouf catches the metaphorical pig and demonstrates his potential for meatier fare as his career continues, but when you’re acting opposite the likes of Tom Hardy, Jessica Chastain and Mia Wasikowska, your best isn’t necessarily good enough.

LAWLESS is also relentlessly violent and entirely unapologetic about the whole thing. As Jack escalates his brothers’ bootlegging operation in the face of mounting corruption amongst the police, a war is waged and it isn’t a pretty one. The question becomes what is anyone actually fighting for though. Every character, save for Jack once he gets a taste of success, is cold and dispassionate. When they pick up their guns, no one has any concern for human life, be that their own or any one else’s. There is rarely ever a moment of joy on any one face and this rampant lifelessness leaves the impression that all of this violence is simply unnecessary. As a result, LAWLESS is left rather listless.