The Western outlaw and the Ma?a gangster are two of America’s most outsized
cinematic antiheroes, and while they share a lot of characteristics (and clichés), the few times they have coincided on screen usually involved a DeLorean. But after a long production delay and a splashy debut at the Cannes Film Festival, Australian director John Hillcoat’s Lawless has ?nally arrived, and it is the closest thing to a combination of the two archetypes that we’ve seen yet. And while it isn’t the perfect marriage, Lawless blends stylish originality with genre standards into a mixture as potent and explosive as Virginia moonshine.
The tale of the bootlegging Bondurant brothers is a family crime saga designed, it would seem, to mirror that of the Corleones. Their story is one adapted from the historical novel written by the grandson of the youngest brother, culled from anecdotes and newspaper stories, with the gaps ?lled in by ?ction. And while those violent, fraternal dynamics are hard at work here, Lawless feels like a ?lm trying so hard to be excellent in every individual facet that it ends up lacking a clear, cohesive tone.
What is clear is that the ?lm’s cast, from top to bottom, give performances that infuse this gritty Western with meaning and pathos. Each of the three Bondurants shine in their own way. As Forrest, the eldest, Tom Hardy blends a deep, minimalist quietude with a powerful physical presence, the latter no doubt aided by his preparation for the role of Bane. (Filming for The Dark Knight Rises began a few months after the filming of Lawless.) Shia LaBeouf, as Jack Bondurant, shows the most range he has yet, displaying a deep need for love and acceptance that drives him and the family business to new heights and into new dangers (and does a bit to drive away the memory of his involvement in the Transformers franchise). The two women in the ?lm, Mia Wasikowska and Jessica Chastain, play the saint and sinner, respectively, and do their best to lend depth to roles without much to them. Despite a very short stay on screen, homage must be paid to the brilliance of Gary Oldman. Cinema’s ultimate chameleon puts on pinstripes as big city badass Floyd Banner, the idol of wide-eyed Jack and a harbinger of the violence these men must endure to protect their way of life.