Martin Scorsese’s latest has been hugely anticipated and trailered to the point of annoyance for the last few months! It is based on a non-fiction book by David Grann and is set in 1920’s Oklahoma. The Osage tribe who own most of the land are becoming increasingly wealthy because the area is rich in oil. However, some of them are dying in mysterious circumstances.
Leonardo Dicaprio stars as Ernest Burkhart who returns from the war to work for his uncle, William Hale (Robert De Niro). He falls in love with Mollie (Lily Gladstone) but William is intent on killing her family members to inherit the oil money.
At three and a half hours long, this was a daunting prospect and the early part of the film did not flow that well, though the outstanding performances of the three leads kept it more than watchable. But, well before the halfway mark, I was fully engaged in the plot. Then, when FBI man Tom White (Jesse Plemons) and his fellow agents arrive to investigate, the story becomes truly gripping. Scorsese ends the movie, rounding up the fates of the characters in a unique and audacious way.
I am sure this film will feature heavily in the awards season early next year. One shoo-in at the Oscars should be the late Robbie Robertson for his bass heavy throbbing score that adds to the tension at all the best moments.
In the end, I do not think this is the masterpiece that Scorsese’s previous film, The Irishman, was but it is a beautifully directed and acted as it tells an important story.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10