Hell or High Water (Defiant Films | Lionsgate – 2017) Review

Whilst watching Hell or High Water, I immediately reminisced to films such as Bonnie and Clyde or Thelma and Louise. The obvious connections would be the crime and drama genre connections and the tale of a pair taking this journey together. Although I wouldn’t necessarily class Hell or High Water a road movie as opposed to Bonnie and Clyde or Thelma and Louise because plot circumstances are different, Hell or High Water certainly follows a similar narrative path and takes its audience on a journey with its characters.

It’s no surprise feelings of the old west linger in the air when watching Hell or High Water. There are Texas rangers after all and that southern accent dominates throughout the film.

Starring Chris Pine, Ben Foster and Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water follows two brothers as they rob the branches of the bank threatening their family’s ranch. One brother is recently out of prison sentence, the other estranged with his ex-wife and kids.

Initially the pairing of Pine and Foster was hard to respond to, meaning it was difficult to find the chemistry. Physically their appearance as brothers didn’t really help either. There’s a moment in the film that talks about how the two look alike and I was curious as to whether we were watching the same film.

In spite of this, as time goes on, you get to see how the brothers interact and what their relationship is like. As a viewer I felt much more interested and invested in Pine’s character and I almost wish we got to jump more into his backstory and struggles when dealing with his brother. Because you get the gist of how things could have been, it would have been interesting to know more and grant us better emotional connections with the characters. The stakes, in turn, might have also been higher.

I do have to commend the writer and director for taking on the crime/western genre in a world of big budget science fiction or action films. The gritty setting of Texas was complemented by cinematography and miseen scene that was pleasing and rewarding to the film’s overall aesthetic.

Hell or High Water may be lacking in some areas but it all makes up for it as a whole. Although I would have loved to have seen more refined decisions around narrative choices, the veteran actors hold the reigns and give us a fairly enjoyable drama.