The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

There is one certain kiss of death in the film industry. Don't lead the public to believe that your film is one thing, when in fact it is another animal altogether. Classic examples of this error can be found in films like Vanilla Sky which was a decent sci-fi flick masquerading as a Tom Cruise thriller, or My Girl, an excellent and poignant drama marketed as comedy by someone who probably became unemployed a full ten seconds after the film tanked. Unfortunately, this film has the kiss right along with the unmanageable title. You hear Jesse James, you think this is a western about a train robber. You would be wrong.

What this film is, is a really well done character study of a sociopath careening merrily down the road of suicidal paranoia and a rabid fan. Brad Pitt's Jesse is tortured and merciless, and he lays down a characteristically complicated and fascinating performance as a man who's not only out of control but knows it and wants it to end. But the real joy is watching Casey Affleck. Affleck imbibes history's hated Robert Ford with no end of nuance - the ignored little brother, a man accustomed to humiliation with dreams of grandeur - Robert Ford is all ego and id - too immature to see that the man he worships is sick and tired of all that ill earned fame. By the time he figures it out it's too late for both of them.

This movie's title isn't the only thing that's toooo long, but even so, writer/director Andrew Dominik gives it a grace and elegance rarely visited on a period piece. It seems more documentary than fiction; the language is refreshingly accurate to the time, the cinematography epic, the acting sublime. I'll admit I took an intermission midway, but I still felt it worth the watch. See the website here. PS - Brad continues to remind me of Robert Redford and see if you don't think RR would have relished this role in his younger days.