La ballata di Buster Scruggs

How do you rate a movie that is very well done, but you just don't connect with it at all? I love the Coen brothers, and I watched this with an open heart. Not every Coen brothers movie knocks it out of the park, but all of them are at least smart and interesting. The same holds true for this one, though I'm sorry to say that I found myself bored throughout most of it.

Six stories is a lot to process in one sitting. The problem for me was that I would be watching one of the segments, trying to understand its significance or find something to appreciate story-wise, and then we moved on to the next tale.

There was nothing wrong with it and I would consider watching it again some time with a fresh perspective. This movie did seem to have a grasp on itself and I trust that the Coens knew what they were doing. It was very unique and beautifully shot, but I think this one ranks low on the Coen's filmography. And if this wasn't a Coen brothers movie, I would probably be more dismissive of it.

I was fortunate enough to see this at the LFF with the Coen brothers present. During their introduction they mentioned how they wrote each chapter as a series of shorts over 25 years, and it certainly felt like this both in good ways and bad. Each story was completely different from the one either side of it and none were short of originality. Stories unfolded in the way only a Coen brother's film could - a style that I have always admired.

What was slightly disappointing was its lack of continuity. Each of the stories are completely contained and the final short was one of the most disappointing for me ending in quite an anticlimax. I understand these shorts are independent of one another but had they intersected in some way I think there could have been a much more satisfying conclusion. But the subversion of that expectation I also admire, my brain was just full of the interesting situations that could have unfolded had these characters come into contact with each other - as per a Tarantino film. It could also have ended with a different short as the 5th story for me (and the gold panning segment) was arguably the best.

Aside from the story itself the film has great visuals, some amazing one liners and incredible acting performances - especially considering the lengths actors went to in order to get into character for just a 20 minutes segment of a film. Overall expect 6 Coen brothers shorts sewn together with the thinest fabric imaginable and a time at the cinema like you haven't had all year.

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.

Beautifully observed vignettes which give believable insights into the lives of early settlers to the Wild West. Ironic, tragic and sometimes comic, each one is entertaining in its own way and serves as a reminder of the harshness of the time.

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.