Lawless

"Extraordinary"

Lawless Review


Director Hillcoat and musician-turned-screenwriter Cave previously worked together back home in Australia on the dark Western The Proposition, and now they have reunited in America for this true story set during Prohibition in the early 1930s. Unsurprisingly, it plays out like a Western. And it also features two of The Proposition's memorable actors, Pearce and Taylor.

The story centres on the three Bondurant brothers in rural Virginia. Eldest sibling Forrest (Hardy) runs the family moonshine business with middle brother Howard (Clarke). But the younger Jack (LaBeouf) wants in on the action and secretly teams up with whiz-kid Cricket (DeHaan) to speed up production and sell their wares to a big-city gangster (Oldman). Then slimy city-slicker Federal Agent Rakes (Pearce) arrives, determined to stop bootlegging no matter who he has to torture and kill. Meanwhile, a sexy barmaid (Chastain) with a shady past arrives to distract Forrest, while Jack daringly woos the rebellious daughter (Wasikowska) of the local preacher.

Yes, there are a lot of characters in this film, and they interlink together on a variety of levels that makes the film feel almost literary in the way it approaches the story and themes. Indeed, it's based on the acclaimed historical novel The Wettest County in the World, written by Matt Bondurant, Jack's grandson. And the detail in the characters makes each of these people utterly riveting. All of them are caught in a moral dilemma, dodging official rules that are hindering their lives, and Rakes represents the strong arm of the system trying to crush them. It's probably no surprise that Pearce never really tries to make this vile character even remotely sympathetic.

Hardy is terrific in the lead role, deploying that Bane physicality in a quietly intense way that's sometimes even more terrifying than it was in The Dark Knight Rises. And Chastain is also impressive with her fiery internal toughness. Hillcoat and Cave ground even the film's most grisly moments in honest realism, with textured photography and music (by Cave and Warren Ellis) that adds to the mythological feel of a film that is itself about the creation of a lasting legend that might not be completely true. A fascinating, fiercely haunting movie.

Rich Cline



Lawless

Facts and Figures

Run time: 116 mins

In Theaters: Wednesday 29th August 2012

Box Office USA: $37.4M

Box Office Worldwide: $53.7M

Budget: $26M

Distributed by: The Weinstein Company

Production compaines: Benaroya Pictures, Weinstein Company, The, Yucaipa Films, Revolt Films, Annapurna Pictures, Pie Films Inc.

Reviews

Contactmusic.com: 4.5 / 5

Rotten Tomatoes: 67%
Fresh: 135 Rotten: 66

IMDB: 7.3 / 10

Cast & Crew

Director: John Hillcoat

Producer: Michael Benaroya, Megan Ellison, ,

Starring: as Jack Bondurant, as Forrest Bondurant, as Charlie Rakes, as Maggie Beauford, as Bertha Minnix, as Cricket Pate, as Gummy Walsh, as Howard Bondurant, Lew Temple as Deputy Henry Abshire, as Maggie Beauford, as Floyd Banner, Marcus Hester as Deputy Jeff Richards, as Sheriff Hodges, Alex Van as Tizwell Minnix

Contactmusic


Links


New Movies

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Movie Review

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Movie Review

After the thunderous reception for J.J. Abrams' Episode VII: The Force Awakens two years ago,...

Daddy's Home 2 Movie Review

Daddy's Home 2 Movie Review

Like the 2015 original, this comedy plays merrily with cliches to tell a silly story...

The Man Who Invented Christmas Movie Review

The Man Who Invented Christmas Movie Review

There's a somewhat contrived jauntiness to this blending of fact and fiction that may leave...

Ferdinand Movie Review

Ferdinand Movie Review

This animated comedy adventure is based on the beloved children's book, which was published in...

Brigsby Bear Movie Review

Brigsby Bear Movie Review

Director Dave McCary makes a superb feature debut with this offbeat black comedy, which explores...

Battle of the Sexes Movie Review

Battle of the Sexes Movie Review

A dramatisation of the real-life clash between tennis icons Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs,...

Shot Caller Movie Review

Shot Caller Movie Review

There isn't much subtlety to this prison thriller, but it's edgy enough to hold the...

Advertisement
The Disaster Artist Movie Review

The Disaster Artist Movie Review

A hilariously outrageous story based on real events, this film recounts the making of the...

Stronger Movie Review

Stronger Movie Review

Based on a true story about the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, this looks like one...

Only the Brave Movie Review

Only the Brave Movie Review

Based on a genuinely moving true story, this film undercuts the realism by pushing its...

Wonder Movie Review

Wonder Movie Review

This film may be based on RJ Palacio's fictional bestseller, but it approaches its story...

Happy End  Movie Review

Happy End Movie Review

Austrian auteur Michael Haneke isn't known for his light touch, but rather for hard-hitting, award-winning...

Patti Cake$ Movie Review

Patti Cake$ Movie Review

Seemingly from out of nowhere, this film generates perhaps the biggest smile of any movie...

The Limehouse Golem Movie Review

The Limehouse Golem Movie Review

A Victorian thriller with rather heavy echoes of Jack the Ripper, this film struggles to...

Advertisement
Artists
Actors
    Filmmakers
      Artists
      Bands
        Musicians
          Artists
          Celebrities
             
              Artists
              Interviews