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Product Description: Everyone in 1880s America knows Jesse James. He?s the nation?s most notorious criminal hunted by the law in 10 states. He?s also the land?s greatest hero lauded as a Robin Hood by the public. Robert Ford? No one knows him. Not yet. But the ambitious 19-year-old aims to change that. He?ll befriend Jesse ride with his gang. And if that doesn?t bring Ford fame he?ll find a deadlier way. Friendship becomes rivalry and the quest for fame becomes obsession in this virile epic produced in part by Ridley Scott and featuring gripping portrayals by Brad Pitt (winner of the Venice Film Festival Best Actor Award) as Jesse and Casey Affleck as the youth drawn closer to his goal?and farther from his own humanity.Running Time: 159 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: WESTERN/OUTLAWS UPC: 012569763739 Manufacturer No: 76373Amazon.com: Of all the movies made about or glancingly involving the 19th-century outlaw Jesse Woodson James, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is the most reflective, most ambitious, most intricately fascinating, and indisputably most beautiful. Based on the novel of the same name by Ron Hansen, it picks up James late in his career, a few hours before his final train robbery, then covers the slow catastrophe of the gang's breakup over the next seven months even as the boss himself settles into an approximation of genteel retirement. But in another sense all of the movie is later than that. The very title assumes the audience's familiarity with James as a figure out of history and legend, and our awareness that he was--will be--murdered in his parlor one quiet afternoon by a backshooting crony. The film--only the second to be made by New Zealand–born writer-director Andrew Dominik--reminds us that Dominik's debut film, Chopper (2000), was the cunningly off-kilter portrait of another real-life criminal psychopath who became a kind of rock star to his society. The Jesse James of this telling is no Robin Hood robbing the rich to give to the poor, and that train robbery we witness is punctuated by acts of gratuitous brutality, not gallantry. Nineteen-year-old Bob Ford (Casey Affleck) seeks to join the James gang out of hero worship stoked by the dime novels he secretes under his bed, but his glam hero (Brad Pitt) is a monster who takes private glee in infecting his accomplices with his own paranoia, then murdering them for it. In the careful orchestration of James's final moments, there's even a hint that he takes satisfaction in his own demise. Affleck and Pitt (who co-produced with Ridley Scott, among others) are mesmerizing in the title roles, but the movie is enriched by an exceptional supporting cast: Sam Shepard as Jesse's older, more stable brother Frank; Sam Rockwell as Bob Ford's own brother Charlie, whose post-assassination descent into madness is astonishing to behold; Paul Schneider, Garret Dillahunt, and Jeremy Renner as three variously doomed gang members; and Mary-Louise Parker, who as Jesse's wife Zee has few lines yet manages with looks and body language to invoke a wellnigh-novelistic backstory for herself. There are also electrifying cameos by James Carville, doing solid actorly work as the governor of Missouri; Ted Levine, as a lawman of antic spirit; and Nick Cave, composer of the film's score (with Warren Ellis) and screenwriter of the Aussie "Western" The Proposition, suddenly towering over a late scene to perform the folk song that set the terms for the book and movie's title. Still, the real costar is Roger Deakins, probably the finest cinematographer at work today. The landscapes of the movie (mostly in Alberta and Manitoba) will linger in the memory as long as the distinctive faces, and we seem to feel the sting of its snows on our cheeks. Interior scenes are equally persuasive. Few Westerns have conveyed so tangibly the bleakness and austerity of the spaces people of the frontier called home, and sought in vain to warm with human spirit. --Richard T. Jameson
Customer Reviews:
- The Journey: This is an interesting tale. Though it really goes out of its way to portray Robert Ford as a sycophant and cowardly weasel, it doesn't do much for Jesse James either. James is portrayed as a man of extreme charm and anger. It doesn't portray him as a southern man fighting against the union, but as a man who wants to rob and steal. Pitt does a really good job in a complex role that has him swingingly widely in emotion. Casey Affleck keeps pace with him in a role perfect for him. Yes, I think the film could have been trimmed just a bit so it would be a faster ride for those who don't appreciate a tale slowly unwinding. Still, if you can appreciate the scenery, there are some gorgeous shots in this movie. This is a good modern western.
- ANDREW DOMINIK, OPUS 2: ***** 2007. Based on Ron Hansen's The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and written and directed by the New Zealander director Andrew Dominik. Two nominations for the Academy awards and a prize in Venice. I feel very sorry for the reviewers here who found this motion picture long and boring. They just chose the wrong movie for their saturday night and they still have a long way to go to appreciate films as an art manifestation. As for the film itself, it's undoubtedly a masterpiece. I liked the way the director described life in the West then and also the strange relation that related Jesse James and Robert Ford. If you are curious, take the time to see how another great director, Samuel Fuller, handled the same theme in 1949 in I SHOT JESSE JAMES Eclipse Series 5 - The First Films of Samuel Fuller (The Baron of Arizona / I Shot Jesse James / The Steel Helmet) (Criterion Collection). You'll be surprised how Fuller's sensibility announces Robert Ford's portrayal by Andrew Dominik. A DVD zone your library.
- The Greatest Western Ever Made : "Jesse James" is a Masterpiece: Just gorgeous. Watching this with near-zero expectations, I was at first intrigued and then blown away by the sheer mastery the director had over his subjects. And the cinematography! Rarely has a Western won so much universal acclaim, and the only downside to this gem is that it takes a while to get into things, and the slow pace may not win it any new viewers. Still, if you persevere, you will be rewarded with a rich and darkly textured real-life story that is gripping, and most importantly, rewatchable.
When I buy a DVD, I need to know that I will watch it again. This is perhaps my first criterion when I choose something to purchase. How many discs do you have in your collection that you paid full retail for, but then never cared to watch again? Exactly. I bought this with the same `impulse purchase' mentality that fuels so many of our ridiculous shopping decisions, but at least I had based it on some really good reviews I'd read (Roger Ebert's was the one that swayed me the most). What a great investment. This film has zoomed to my list of Top 10 Greatest Films of all Time, and I can't think of a single film since "Mulholland Drive" this decade that I can watch over and over again without ever getting bored.
Bradley Pitt turns in a career-defining performance, but it is difficult again here to separate the man from the character. Jesse James is supposed to be 34 years old (the film chronicles his final year of life before being shot in the back by Bob Ford). If you do your research, you'll find that the real Jesse James was, like Pitt, a rare specimen of human beauty (which also no doubt helped him become an ever bigger legend), but its impossible for a second to buy Pitt as a man in his early thirties (he looks his age in this film, which is about 45). Casey Affleck, who in real life is around 33, plays a 19 year old. The discrepancy in the age of the characters versus the actual actors really shows - but if you can get past this minor quibble, it all works.
The greatest thing about this film is the cinematography. Never has a Western looked this gorgeous. Forget the brilliance of "Unforgiven" or even those bleak shots in "Brokeback Mountain". This film soars far above those classics and rewrites the rules for the way a Western should look. Take it from me. I am no fan of the genre, but this film turned me around. In part its because it doesn't work as a straight-out Western, and is more character driven, and the dialog is certainly `set in the times'.
It's a pity that this perfect example of superb film-making will never get a huge audience. At the very least it deserves to be a cult classic (which I believe it is). Its also a film to OWN and not rent. If at all you are reading this review to make a purchasing decision, then I urge you to order this right away. Finally a film worth the hype.
Five Stars. A Certified Masterpiece.
- Slow about as exciting as watching paint dry: Ok... First off I don't usually write reviews.
The good: I agree with what a lot of the other posters wrote. It was a beautiful movie. The acting was ok... If you like long slow glares with few words...
The Bad: Oh my god was this a slow movie. There was way to much time to enjoy the scenery and costumes. About half way through I was bored out of my mind. Then when I thought it was over (ok given the title I don't think this is much of a surprise but just in case spoiler alert) When they finally got around to killing Jessie James I wanted to cry. They dragged this scene out at least 10 minutes to long. But I was happy. I thought it was over... Then (spoiler alert #2) I found out the depths of my error... There was at least another 30-40 minutes of the movie... Yeash if it hadn't been for free and I was trying to fall asleep anyway I wouldn't have bothered.
ps: The two stars is only because it was a pretty movie.
- Nice seller! very nice and professional...: Great movie -I really liked it...Casey Affleck is kind of slow talking and moving..But I liked it...thank you
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