When you think of the Western genre, you quickly realize that the major milestones of this subject go back decades. Milestones such as “Play me the song of death”, “The Black Falcon” or “12 noon” come to mind. But the fact that the great classics have been around for a few years does not mean that contemporary Western cinema no longer has highlights to offer.
A good example of how well westerns are still going today is 2015’s ‘Slow West’. There’s nothing here in the spirit of a romantic idealization of the Wild West; instead, director John Maclean puts an end to the romanticized ideas of the Wild West in his debut. on! Haven’t seen “Slow West” yet? Then you can listen to it again today, February 13 at 8:15 PM on Tele 5.
That’s what ‘Slow West’ is about
Jay Cavendish (Kodi Smit-McPhee) follows his lover Rose (Caren Pistorius) and her father (Rory McCann) to Colorado. The two fled their home country amid murder charges. On his journey through impassable landscapes, Jay meets the mysterious traveler Silas (Michael Fassbender), who offers to protect him during his journey (for a price, of course).
Though skeptical, Jay accepts the grumpy stranger’s offer because he wouldn’t be able to survive for long on his own in the world of the unforgiving, rugged West. Little does he know, he’s running out of time because a bounty has been placed on his girl and her father and unscrupulous bounty hunters (including Ben Mendelsohn) from all corners of the country will soon be on their trail…
Western insider tip with Marvel stars
In the official FILMSTARTS review, “Slow West” received a strong 4 out of 5 possible stars. The conclusion of our author Christoph Petersen is as follows: “A clear, short, beautifully filmed deconstruction of the romanticized Wild West.”
While ‘Slow West’ does everything it can to show the Wild West from its dark, devious side, the film does not only thrive on the strong performances (on ‘X-Men’ star Michael Fassbender and others Ben Mendelsohn, known from “Captain Marvel”, which you can always rely on anyway). It is precisely the breathtaking images of cinematographer Robbie Ryan that give the anti-Western character a memorable, profound resonance.