leonblackwood
Review:
I wasn't a big fan of this movie because I found it quite slow and it seemed to go on forever but the storyline was quite emotional and the cinematography was spot on. I'm also not a big fan of the over-rated Christian Bale but he was the perfect choice for his role, mainly because he's moody throughout and I didn't see him crack a smile from the beginning to the end. Anyway, the film is set in 1892, were a loving family is destroyed when a Comanche war group kill Rosalee Quaid's 3 little children and her husband. Rosalee manages to escape from the ruthless Comanche tribe, by hiding in a small rock in the forest, and when she knows it's safe, she returns to her burnt down house, whilst holding her dead baby in her hands. Meanwhile, in Fort Berringer, New Mexico, Capt. Joseph J. Blocker (Christian Bale) is called into Col. Abraham Biggs (Stephen Lang) office, and he is given his last orders before he retires from the army. Biggs explains to Blocker that he is to escort a dying Cheyenne war chief, Yellow Hawk (Wes Studi) back to the tribal lands in Montana, along with his family. As Yellow Hawk brutally murdered some of Blocker's war buddies, Blocker turns down the mission but when Biggs threatens to take away his pension and give him a court-martial, Blocker agree's to the mission. As the president has signed for the release of the prisoners, Blocker is forced to chaperone Yellow Hawk and his family with no mistakes but he is determined to make their journey as uncomfortable as possible. He puts together a unit to join their journey, who he orders to put chains on the 2 native men. Whilst on there journey, they come across Rosalee's burnt house, and they find her inside with her dead children. Blocker manages to convince her to join them on there journey, so they bury her children and then they head off to Montana. On their way, they are attacked by a Comanche tribe, which damages some of Blocker's unit. The rest of the film just follows them on their journey to Montana, where they come across more Comanches, and Blocker and Yellow Hawk finally gain each other's trust. When they finally get to Montana, Yellow Hawk dies of cancer, and while they are burying him, an American landowner threatens Blocker and the rest of his group, for burying an Indian on his land. After a severe gun battle, which results in most of Yellow Hawks family getting murdered, Blocker and Rosalee manage to survive, along with Little Bear, Yellow Hawks grandson. There are some touching moments which were quite emotional, and I like the root message about racism and class but I still found it a bit too long, and quite boring. It was good to see the different situations from both sides, and the concept is relevant to today, so from that point of view, it's worth a watch. With that aside, we have all been watching Cowboy & Indians movies since we were small, and although this has a deep message, it still seems the same as the black and white movies that were made decades ago, so don't expect an Oscar-winning film. Average!Round-Up:
This movie was written and directed by Scott Cooper, who also brought you the Oscar-winning Crazy Heart, Out Of The Furnace, which also starred Christian Bale, and Black Mass with Johnny Depp. He obviously has a versatile style of movies, which have all been successful at the box office but I wasn't that impressed with this film. After watching the bonus material, he made a point of making an authentic film, which stayed true to the period, which he successfully did but from an entertainment point of view, I won't be watching it again anytime soon. As for Christian Bale, his career has gone on a downhill slump since the Dark Knight but he's due to voice Bagheera in the new Mowgli movie which is due out in 2019, so his filmography will be getting a well-needed boost soon.Budget: $50million
Worldwide Gross: $40millionGenre: Adventure, Drama, Western
Cast: Christian Bale, Rosamund Pike, Scott Shepherd, David Midthunder, Rory Cochrane, Jonathan Majors, Scott Wilson, John Benjamin Hickey, Stephen Long, Wes Studi, Jesse Plemons, Adam Beach, Peter Mullan and Ben Foster. 5/10
classicsoncall
The opening scene is reminiscent of "The Outlaw Josey Wales", but instead of the male head of household surviving a savage attack by Comanche Rattlesnakes, it's the wife who bears witness to the brutal murder of her husband and three children. She alone survives the furious onslaught, later to be discovered by a traveling band of soldiers escorting a dying Cheyenne War Chief to his ancestral home in Montana's Valley of the Bears. It's fascinating to observe all the passion and nuance Rosamund Pike puts into her roles. She became a favorite of mine for her scintillating portrayal in "Gone Girl", while here she displays all the torment and grief of a woman confronted by the incalculable loss of her entire family.It's often observed that the modern day Western is dead, but films like "Bone Tomahawk" and "Slow West" prove that you can't bury the genre just yet. "Hostiles" achieves powerful resonance in it's portrayal of former warrior adversaries adjusting to the passing ways of the Old West. Set in 1892, the story follows Captain Joseph Blocker (Christian Bale) as he leads a small cavalry party northward on a mission to deliver a former enemy and his family to their territorial homeland. Cheyenne warrior Yellow Hawk (Wes Studi) appears to have buried his own personal animosities while having been held captive at Fort Berringer. His early offer of help to Blocker to survive a savage band of roving Comanches is eventually accepted in good faith after the shackled chief and his son Black Hawk (Adam Beach) fight valiantly to defend themselves and their soldier escorts. Throughout the film, the effects of a brutal past in the soldier life of both Captain Blocker and his Master Sergeant Tommy Metz (Rory Cochrane) are given over to brooding contemplation. The way each man deals with it tested along the way via various dangerous encounters. It's some of those thoughtful scenes in which director Scott Cooper chooses to steady the pace of the film to examine the conflict in the expressions of Blocker, Metz, and Roslaie Quaid (Pike). For that reason, some viewers will criticize the picture for being too slow or boring, but for this viewer, those moments offer the added dimension of personal, inner turmoil that makes the story so poignant.If there's an element I would criticize in the story it would be the apparently abrupt transition of Rosalie Quaid from shattered housewife to a functioning member of the Blocker party. Given the time constraints a director must face, it would have been difficult to effect such a change no matter what length the movie might have gone. What I did find encouraging though was the manner in which the picture concluded. It would have been far too easy and cliched for Blocker to effect an overt relationship with Ms. Quaid. The way Blocker boarded the Chicago bound train reflected his own conflicted ambiguity about leaving his violent and brutal past behind. I thought that was an effective way to end the story.One last thought. I always keep an eye and ear open for the names of Indian characters in films like this. In this case, most of them were not unusually descriptive. You had the aforementioned Yellow Hawk and Black Hawk, along with their family members Elk Woman and Living Woman. However I was pleasantly surprised to check the cast list and learn the name of the young actor who portrayed Black Hawk's son, Little Bear. It's Xavier Horsechief - I mean, really, how cool is that?
