top of page
Writer's pictureKaveh Jalinous

Hostiles (2017): Film Review




Western is a tough genre to crack. It is really hard to make a western with a good plot, a good script, and good acting. Throughout history, countless filmmakers have tried to make a great western, but ultimately failed, messing up with the plot, the acting, or anything in between the two. But, when the trailer for Hostiles, Scott Cooper's newest film released, it had a lot of potential. With two great actors: Christian Bale and Rosamund Pike, the film's trailer looked to promise terrific acting, a good plot-line, and terrific visuals. Sadly, Hostiles is nothing more then a mess of a film, with only Christian Bale's amazing performance to save it from complete destruction. The film tells the story of a Army captain, who is hired to escort a dying Native American chief with cancer, from New Mexico, to the chiefs homeland of Montana. In the middle of the journey, he meets a widow, who he brings along with him to finish the journey. The journey would be anything but easy, with a reckless Native American tribe trying to hunt them down, and countless obstacles in their way. Managing to get two amazing and famous actors, Christian Bale and Rosamund Pike, director and writer Scott Cooper uses them for a glorified police escort. The film is a complete mess, with confusing exposition, unnecessary scenes of action, and little to no character development at all. Bale's character motivations are completely unclear, as one second he is this angry, hating chief, and the next he is this happy-go-lucky guy, which makes absolutely no sense. The film is extremely long, clocking at 135 minutes, and is filled with over 30 minutes of just them riding through desert landscapes. Sure, it may be hard to make a good western, but it is also hard to make a terrible western, a challenge that Scott Cooper rises up to, and succeeds in. Cooper himself is hostile for making the audience sit through the ultimate debacle that is Hostiles. Because, it truly is a horrific western. Enough said.

0 comments

Comments


bottom of page