This past week, a movie came along that was named, Hell or High Water. This movie did the impossible: took a dry, boring, cliched genre and transformed it into a modern treasure that exemplified the term: Oscar-worthy. The story follows two brothers who rob banks that have "robbed" their family of their land. The mission is to pay back a reverse mortgage with the bank's own money through a series of heists aimed at the bank itself in the rural areas of east Texas. The plan goes array when their final heist involves killing several people including a Mexican/Native American police officer, partner and friend to the antagonist in the story, a police chief only weeks from retirement; portrayed by Jeff Bridges. Police eventually chase down one brother, a wild ex-convict who lets the other brother, portrayed by Chris Pine get away and complete the mission successfully. The wild brother is killed by Bridges in a shootout with police, while Pines completes the mission.
The movie itself is great because it is a fresh drink of water in the long string of old westerns that do nothing but bore. The acting by Pines is superb and Bridges does not disappoint at all. Bridges is no stranger to westerns, he portrayed the lead character in the reboot of True Grit which received critical acclaim as well in 2010. The production released the following synopisis: "Toby is a divorced father who's trying to make a better life for his son. His brother Tanner is an ex-convict with a short temper and a loose trigger finger. Together, they plan a series of heists against the bank that's about to foreclose on their family ranch. Standing in their way is Marcus, a Texas Ranger who's only weeks away from retirement. As the siblings plot their final robbery, they must also prepare for a showdown with a crafty lawman who's not ready to ride off into the sunset"
The quality of a movie like this combines both the ecstasy of a thrilling western, with the superb acting and direction of a good film making crew. They should begin working out to carry all those Oscars.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Hell or High Water is a masculine piece of almost perfect film making, that combines a plot as enthralling as its characters, giving us a film that quenches our 6 year long thirst for a good western movie. It is the best movie of the year, so far. SCORE: 99%
