The Old Man & The Gun

First Hit: Once again Robert Redford shows why he’s one of the best in this, his swan song.

In 1994 I was standing at the United Airline's counter verifying my seat assignment. To my left was the First-Class counter and there was a gentleman standing there being served. We both left our respective customer service agents at the same time and ended up walking down the concourse together. I looked over at him and said, “where are you headed?” He smiled and said “Salt Lake City, you?” “Same” I said.

I mentioned that I was doing some work for the State of Utah and that I loved the beauty of the state. “Yeah, he said, it’s beautiful county.”

We continued walking towards our plane, but I couldn’t help but notice most of the people walking towards us were smiling and pointing at us. It was mostly women that were doing the pointing and nudging, with smiles on their faces, the person they were walking with.

I looked over at him and he looked back smiling when I said, “they must be looking at you, because I’ve never been looked at while walking in an airport." Then, as the smile creeped across his face, I said, “oh my, my mother is going to really be excited when I tell her I walked down the airport concourse with Robert Redford.” He laughed and said, “I get that a lot.”

Despite his outstanding performances as an actor, he’s never won an Oscar for acting and was nominated once for The Sting. I can tell you, that his performance as The Man in All Is Lost, is beyond amazing. He’s the only actor and the whole film is shot on a sailboat that is in distress. If you’ve never seen it, do so to watch this enigma of a man show you how to capture the whole screen all the time.

In The Old Man & The Gun, it’s been reported that this is his last film as an actor. And, as Forrest Tucker, Redford moved through this story like silk. As a lifetime bank robber he knows no other life. He’s been caught 16 previous times and escaped prison each time only to go back to the only profession that makes him happy.

We watch him rob banks by himself and with two partners, Teddy (Danny Glover) and Waller (Tom Waits). Hoping to catch the “Over the Hill Gang,” as the newspapers call them, is Police Detective John Hunt (Casey Affleck).

When Forrest robs a bank, he’s kind, thoughtful, and only shows the gun to the manager or teller. He waltzes in and out, no muss no fuss. He's a gentleman at all things.

During the initial robbery, he stops during his getaway to help Jewel (Sissy Spacek) who is stranded because her truck is stranded. What the audience knows it is also a away to take the heat off himself because the cops who are chasing him—drive right past.

He likes Jewel and they began to see each other and this story line provides the film much needed grounding.

Redford as Tucker is wonderful. He fits the enigmatic way Forrest goes through his life and I can see why Redford was attracted to this character. Spacek is fantastic. She’s so grounded and fully meets Redford’s character with grace. Affleck was strong as the determined detective that also has a heart to understand Tucker. Glover and Waits were great in their small but pivotal roles. Tika Sumpter as Affleck’s wife, Maureen, was sublime. I loved how she supported Hunt. David Lowery wrote and directed a wonderful story giving Redford a wonderful platform to say goodbye.

Overall: This was a joyous romp through Forrest Tucker’s life as a robber.

Get Low

First Hit: Better film than what the previews showed and Duvall is strong in quirky character role.

Get Low is the phrase Felix Bush (Robert Duvall) uses to talk about dying and being put in the ground. Bush is a self-imposed hermit for over 40 years. People have stories about him but as he says in his clipped sentence sort of way; just because that's their story doesn’t mean it is true.

Bush lives by himself on 300 acres of land and shoots at most people that trespass on his land. He’s starting to feel that he is nearing the end of his life so he hires a funeral parlor run by Frank Quinn (played by Bill Murray) and Buddy (played by Lucas Black) to give him a party before he dies. He wants people to come to the party and tell stories about him.

However, what he really wants is to tell his story. He asks his best friend and Reverend Charlie Jackson (played by Bill Cobbs) to tell it for him but Cobbs refuses. To promote interest he offers anyone his land by asking people to send in $5.00 to Quinn Funeral Parlor and with the $5.00, the person gets a chance in the lottery.

Sissy Spacek plays Mattie Darrow who “had a go” with Bush many years earlier and even takes a walk with him on his land. As the day arrives, hundreds of people show up to hear the truth as Bush experienced it.

Duvall makes the most of this role and the minimal dialogue he is given. He carries the burden of the unspoken truth with conviction and it works well. Spacek is good but nothing exceptional as his one time girlfriend. Murray as the funeral director Quinn is solid and is one of Murray’s better serious roles. Black was very strong as Murray’s assistant and becomes Bush's new friend. Aaron Schneider directed this film with the kind of subtlety required to make it work.

Overall: Although not a great film it was solid enough to keep my interest and told a good story.

Four Christmases

First Hit: Somewhere in the concept of people having parents and step parents and dealing with Christmas there is a good film; this one isn’t it.

Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn play Kate and Brad respectively. They are a couple who think they’ve got it all together with no commitments, lots of fun dates, and doing all the cool things. There is nothing there on the screen that told me they weren’t acting parts.

The chemistry, their personalities didn’t mesh and I couldn’t see them as a couple. They don’t like being around their families, so their “cool thing” at Christmas is to jet off to some foreign spot, have fun, while telling lies to their parents and step parents that they are off dong some humanitarian gig for Christmas.

This year they get caught and decide to visit their four families. The only one that had any sort of realistic sense to it was the at Kate’s father’s house. It is here you get some decent acting by these scenes and John Voight. At the previous three family visits the situations are set up to create mayhem and comic riffs.

I’m shocked that Sissy Spacek, Robert Duvall, and Mary Steenburgen would have signed up for these roles. It makes them look stupid and I can guess that they may be embarrassed by being in this end product. This kind of film does fit Vaughn’s style but the writing doesn’t allow him to grow or do much real stuff.

Overall: The concept was great and perhaps Reese with someone else as the male lead and filmed as a drama and some decent writing there is a really good film. This slapstick view of the premise is a waste.