Never Grow Old

This was a bleak movie, yes. Emile Hirsch also had a terrible Irish accent. But despite some of the more obvious gripes about the movie, this one is well worth the watch.

Sure, the whole undertaker thing might be a little on the nose, but I love the lessons in supply and demand: Cusack kills, Hirsch buries, and suddenly the Californian gold rush comes to a nowhere town.

Another interesting dynamic was the shifting power dynamics between the sheriff, the priest, and the outlaw.

In my opinion this film is thoughtful, entertaining, somewhat well-acted, and well worth the invested time.

John cuzac seems to have gone the same way as Bruce Willis and Nick cage, in that he's taking a lot of crap for a wage. Usually I cringe at most of his films now, particularly as he continues to insist on dyeing his hair raven black, but he's actually amazing in this. He obviously had a lot of fun as the bad guy, as he slimes his way into a god fearing town. Emile does a stunning job of portraying conflict as the town's grave digger and coffin maker. It was a slow simmering film, with some obvious plot points and z few surprises along the way.

I don't think this movie got a wide release as i only found out about it browsing Google for lesser known new movies. It's beautifully shot with a cool grim tone throughout and everyone delivers a strong performance. Emile Hirsch is an actor who i've always thought should have been a bigger star, he's great in movies like Killer Joe and In To The Wild, he can easily lead a movie. John Cusack leaves a strong impression as i don't recall seeing him playing a bad guy before. He's cold and obviously has no care for anyone but himself, he will kill you if he feels like it at the time or he might not, he's unpredictable. It's also refreshing to see a western based around an undertaker. Most westerns have one but they're mostly a side character or less. It gives the movie a more down to Earth and realistic feel which i really like. Definitely an underrated movie, go see it.

In a tiny town on the road to California, the villagers live peacefully under the reverend's influence: « no alcohol, no gambling, no wh*re », as god wants us to be, theoretically speaking. The main inhabitants are this narrow-minded preacher (Danny Webb), a disillusioned sheriff (Tim Ahern) and an Irish undertaker (Emile Hirsch) married to a French woman (Déborah François). This village painfully survives until the arrival of Dutch Albert (John Cusack), a sinister man who deliberately seeks to bring chaos in this fragile universe. Why? Well, because he can and this chaos seems also to bring him some indescribable satisfaction. This fellow will even brashly open a decadent establishment with an irreverent signboard « whiskey, billiards, cards & fine ladies » right in front of the reverend's house. Needless to say, this reverend will be quickly overwhelmed by the imminent events.

Ivan Kavanagh managed to recreate a realistic and deeply dark atmosphere thanks to an excellent stage setting and an out-of-the-ordinary sense of detail: the sets, the costumes, a depressing almost-permanent mud, a very neat photography, picturesque landscapes, smoke screens, a discrete but ominous musical environment, ... Moreover, Emile Hirsch, John Cusack and Danny Webb are awesome.

August the 8th, this movie is rated 5,8 of 10. Quite clearly underrated! 7/8 of 10 in my humble opinion.

If your looking for a good quick western this is good. Kids characters i think weren't written for the day but that's it. I dont know why this is rated by viewers so low. Currently at 5.8, not a must see but not a 5.8 either.