THE BALLAD OF BUSTER SCRUGGS
US, 2018, 133 minutes, Colour.
Tim Blake Nelson, James Franco, Stephen Root, Liam Neeson, Harry Melling, Tom Waits, Zoe Kazan, Granger Hines, Bill Heck, Jon Jo O’ Neill, Brendan Gleeson, Saul Rubinek, Tyne Daly, Chelcie Ross.
Directed by Ethan Coen, Joel.Coen.
After 20 years and more of writing and directing films, the Coen Brothers have won many awards, been present at festivals, have built up a great number of admirers around the world. This film was originally a series of six stories about the West. They decided they would put them together as a feature film and were taken on by Netflix.
The range of stories is quite vast, familiar stories from the west but given some twists, often with some wry comments. The tone is set with the first story which has the title of the whole film, enhanced by the presence of Tim Blake Nelson (reminding audiences of O Brother, Where Art Thou), riding through a vast canyon, singing ‘Water, cool clear, water’. He is ingratiating, cheerful, talking to camera – going into a remote bar to play cards, refused whiskey, finishing up killing everyone with speed and skills, gauging how to shoot, using a mirror. His luck runs out in the next town as he is hunted down by a bounty hunter, fails, but is seen cheerfully literally winging his way to heaven!
James Franco is the focus of Near Algodones, a bank robber in the desert, confronting a teller, Stephen Root, who turns the tables on him with concealed rifles. However, the robber is taken by a posse, judged, roped to a branch only for Indians to attack the posse and kill them. While he is rescued by a rustler, another posse takes him and he is sentenced to death by hanging – with a wry joke when he asks the blubbering victim next to him whether this is his first time!
The next story, Meal Ticket is rather sombre, Liam Neeson as a travelling impresario providing entertainment for remote communities, in the dead of winter, using his wagon as a stage and his artist, Harry Melling, a man with no legs and no arms, reciting everything from Shelley to Lincoln.
And the story after that is fairly straightforward with Tom Waits as a gold prospector, landscapes this time lush and green. This seems a happy story until the prospector is betrayed by a companion after his gold, but, ironically, the tables reversed.
The Gal who Got Rattled is a rather longer story, opening in one of those boarding houses of the 19th century with some of those present about to go on a wagon train journey to the west. The focus is on Zoe Kazan, a rather prim young woman, expecting to go west to be married, but her plans being radically changed. Bill Heck is sympathetic as one of the hands for the wagon train. He is attracted to the young woman, awkwardly but politely proposes, she accepting. A story which seems to be moving towards a happy ending but has, perhaps, the saddest ending of all.
And what to make of the last story? The Mortal Remains? A stagecoach with an odd selection of passengers, English, Irish, French, a trapper and a rather haughty lady discuss life in their lives, finally arriving at a mysterious hotel. A death story? A ghost story?
A mixed bag of stories but also with the Coen Brothers touch!
1. The title, the first story, the film is a collection of six stories of the West, the range of themes and topics, familiar and unfamiliar?
2. The work of the Coen brothers, the range of genres, their take on the west, the focus on violence, characters, situations? A ride view?
3. The settings, the beautiful photography, the landscapes, the high canyons and passes, the valleys, towns and streets, the seasons, travelling in the snow, the wagon train, the stagecoach and the rides? The musical score? The range of songs?
4. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, the performance by Tim Blake Nelson, singing, Water, the horse, his instrument, cheerful and addressing the camera, the high mountains, the path? Confiding about the gambling, the house, going in, the hostilities, small stature, bright personality, the bearded ruffians, the refusal of the whiskey, his skill in shooting, speed, the mirror? His travelling to the town, making himself known, the challenge from the young rider, high noon in the street, his self-confidence, shot? The commentary, his getting wings, flying to Heaven?
5. Near Algodones, James Franco is the robber, the desert area, the isolated bank, is surveillance, his horse, entering the bank, the teller, the comic touches, the discussions about the money and investors, robbing the bank, the teller going down, the rifles and the shooting, the robber fleeing and hiding, the teller emerging with his armour, repelling the shots? The robber, his being apprehended by the group, the kangaroo trial, the rope, the attack of the Indians, the fight and the massacre, the robber balancing on his horse, the cattle rustling, shooting the rope, getting the robber to help with the cattle, the posse arriving, the rustler fleeing, the robber arrested, the others condemned, the joke about the hanging being the first time on not? The robber noticing the beautiful girl – hanged?
6. Meal Ticket: the winter, travelling through the snow, the caravan, the entrepreneur? The isolated communities? The wagon, the stage? The shock that the performer had no arms or legs? His accent? The performance, Shelley is Ozymandias, Shakespeare, Lincoln speech, the small audience is, the applause, the collecting of money? The impresario making the meal, feeding the artist? Their travels, the difficulties, the smaller audiences? The man with the performance with the chicken and the bets, the crowds? The impresario buying the chicken, the temptation at the bridge, for the artist in the water, they continuing on?
7. All Gold Canyon, the story of the prospectus, Tom Waits and his singing, riding, the lush valley end to rain, panning for gold, failures, specs, holes in the ground? Persevering, the discovery of the lode, the excitement, his being shot, the betrayal by his partner, his partner contemplating the dead man and the gold, the irony of the prospect of not being dead, the fight, turning the tables, shooting him, marrying him?
8. The Gal who Got Rattled, the story of pioneers, the wagon trains, the difficulties? At the boarding house, the old ladies and their talk, sharing the food? Gilbert long bow and his ambitions, moving, Alice, timid, finding a husband? The going on the track, the vistas of the wagon’s, the countryside? Gilbert, becoming ill, his death? Mr Arthur and his long experience with the wagon trains? Willie Knapp, the years of working, his skills, care for the travellers? The discussions with Alice, her being proper, the effect of the death of her brother, having to pay his debt to the boy helping, and not having the means, explaining to Knapp, the vagueness about her prospects for marriage? His change of heart, giving up travel, thinking to propose, the conversations between the two, tentative, her favourable response, the bonds between them, sharing? Is the dog and the complaints? Going out over the hill, the animals in the puzzle of the dog? Mr Arthur coming to get her back? The appearance of the Indian, the Indians, Arthur and his skill in warding off the Indians, the return in greater numbers? Mr Arthur and his warning to Alice, the gun, his being shot, yet his ruse to kill the Indian, then discovering that Alice had thought he was dead and it followed his advice and killed herself?
9. The Mortal Remains, eerie, the artificial fog and light, the coach? The ghost story? The Englishman, his singing, cheerful? The Irishman and his collaboration? The prim and proper lady with her story of her husband and his lectures, her going to meet him, puritanical, demanding the attention and courtesy for a lady? The Frenchman, his comments, sense of humour, critical? The trapper, not sleeping, his incessant talking, explaining himself and his work, his hopes? The anonymous driver? Their arrival at the hotel, a new driver taking the coach away, the entry, the visuals of the hotel? The talk of life and death – and the aftermath of life?
