The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

When they remade TRUE GRIT, the Coen Brothers clearly thought there weren't enough John Ford westerns -- I agree with them -- so they offered the audience one. With THE BALLAD OF BUSTER SCRUGGS they clearly think there aren't enough movies offering the strengths of the classic B and short westerns: open vistas, lone prospectors, wagon trains, bank robbers, cattle rustlers, gunslinging, moralizing singing cowboys who wander the barren west, strumming their "Radio King" guitars for their horses, and five people inside a stage yarning to each other. So they stuck together half a dozen stories, got their usual assortment of top talent and offered them to us. I am extremely grateful.

Their cinematographer, Bruno Delbonnel, offers us a variety of lighting. I was most impressed by his choices for "The Girl Who Got Rattled", which is staged like posters for WESTWARD THE WOMEN and lit like the covers for Louis Lamour paperbacks in the 1960s. There's an air of artificiality that pervades the movie. That's common enough for the Coens, who like to mock their dead cinematic peers, but. like HAIL, CAESAR shows their fondness for their subject.

The first 17 minutes were the highlight, and it went downhill from there. That first segment, "The Ballad of Buster Scruggs", was excellent. I could watch an entire movie based on that character, played extremely well by Tim Blake Nelson. It was interesting and funny.

"Near Algodones" kept me interested, and I enjoyed the characters, but there was no take away, so it kind of fell flat.

"Meal Ticket" was worthless and should have been cut altogether. It was extremely boring and sad.

"All Gold Canyon" and "The Gal Who Got Rattled" were enjoyable and interesting. Good characters and beautiful cinematography. Both segments kept my interest.

"The Mortal Remains" had some interesting dialogue but it fell off and didn't seem to have a point.

So one segment was fantastic, three others were pretty good, and two were completely forgettable. A mixed bag, but I generously give it a 6/10.

Finally a movie that feels genuine start to finish and a movie that entertains. You are never sure where it starts and where it will end,all the characters immediately feel real without wasting any time. And perhaps most importantly, this is a movie that does not insult your intelligence like almost all other movies do.

Six separate stories of life in the old west, all visually stunning, well written and acted, some more enjoyable than others. The first story, about the namesake Buster Scruggs, is by far the best. Fast, clever dialog, funny and pays homage to classic Westerns. It easily could have been expanded into a full movie. The second story, which is very short, is full of irony and quite good. The next three stories take a bleak and depressing turn, lose the humor and go on much too long. Another reviewer said it best that although they are well done, it's hard to connect to the characters or stories, and ultimately are boring. I hung on hoping some of the dark wit would return, but it never did.

The Coen Brothers are some of the most popular and also best movie directors currently working. They created one of my all time favourite movies in The Big Lebowski (1998), and some of the best movies of their respectable decades such as the cult hit Fargo (1996) & the Neo-Noir Western No Country for Old Men (2007). And now they return in 2018, together with Netflix, to present the most unique movie of the year!

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs tells six individual and self contained storys in the Wild West. As usual, the movie looks stunning. It is beautifully shot, has some of the best cinematography of recent years and it's just a joy to watch. Also the composed soundtrack is really fitting. As said, the movie is cut in six minor portions: The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Near Aldgones, Meal Ticket, All Golds Canyon, the Gal who got Rattled & the Mortal Remains.

They do not have anything particular in common plot wise, but thematically they all tell the huge story of the Wild West - the dark & crazy, sometimes sad side of it. Because make no mistake, this is a really brutal movie. While the first story is very big on comedic relief, the later chapters get really dark, especially the third having a heartbreaking and strangely poetic ending. The fifth story was probably the most cinematic story, since it told a beautiful little tale that could've been easily explored in a regular film. And the last story is basically only one huge dialogue. It's remarkable at how the Coens write their dialogue - it's eventually only people talking about their lifes and out of nowhere the mood changes into complete danger and suspense. The acting of the over all many performers was great as usual, with especially notable performances by Liam Neeson, Tom Waits & Tim Blake Nelson.

There are a few tiny things that bothered me (would've liked a bit more of Gleeson), but these are minor concerns. The Coens are back with another tightly written, thought provoking and fully enjoyable movie that reflects on not only their recurring themes/patterns of violence & fantastic dialogue but also to tell the huge story of the Wild West in its most heartbreaking fashion.

This is the most unique movie of the year!