THE HARDER THEY FALL (2021) – Review

What say we saddle up and mosey’ down to the ole’ multiplex, pardner’? Or something like that since we’ve got an opportunity to take in a true cinematic rarity. Several decades ago the Western (or as the Variety “trade paper’ called them “Oaters”) was a staple at the local “Bijou”, just like comedies, musicals, romances, and horror flicks. And TV “rode alongside’ with the genre encompassing over half of network primetime fare. Oh, but now…(cue the tumbleweeds). Sure, there have been modern Westerns like the recent LET HIM GO and CRY MACHO, but they’re pretty much set in modern times (yes, I know Clint’s last entry was a 1980s story). No, this new one takes place near the tail end of the 19th century and its cast is mainly black (I’d say African-American but many of the actors hail from foreign lands), But this isn’t a first as it follows in the “boot-steps’ of ADIOS AMIGO, BUCK AND THE PREACHER, and POSSE (that’s nearly 30 years ago). And before you ask, this isn’t a remake of Bogie’s last flick, though it’s also called THE HARDER THEY FALL. Giddeyup’!

This “sagebrush saga’ opens with a flashback, showing us a decade-old attack on a frontier family by notorious outlaw Rufus Buck (Idris Elba). The tale jumps forward as a survivor (no, he didn’t become Batman or even the Lone Ranger), Nat Love (Jonathan Majors) exacts his revenge on one of the Buck gang in a deserted church. Meanwhile two members of the “Love crew”, “crack” rifle “shot” Bill Pickett (Edi Gathegi) and cocky confident “quick draw” kid Jim Beckworth (RJ Cyler) ambush the “Vermillion Gang” (they wear colored hoods now closer to pink) and relieve them of their stolen bank loot, which was intended for the Buck gang, though he’s “rotting” in jail. Or is he? Far away a locomotive is stopped and bordered by “Treacherous” Trudy Smith (Regina King) and “fast-draw” killer Cherokee Bill (LaKeth Stanfield). And what is the train’s treasure? Cash? Gold? No, it’s their boss, Buck himself who was being transported to another “facility” (it seems that the gang has an unlikely ally high up in the government). Meanwhile, Nat visits a high-class saloon, after checking his gunbelt with the tough bouncer/ bodyguard “Cuffee” (Danielle Deadwyler) and reunites with its owner, and “lost flame”, “Stagecoach” Marie (Zazie Beets). Later, the saloon hosts another reunion as Love is approached by famed lawman Bass Reeves (Delroy Lindo), who delivers the news of Buck’s escape. The next morning the two are joined by Pickett and Beckworth on the trail to Redwood City, where, much to Love’s surprise, they are joined by Mary and Cuffee. Over in their destination, Buck re-establishes himself as the town’s “kingpin”, tossing off the law, acting Sheriff Wiley (Deon Cole), and levying a hefty “protection tax” (to make up for the earlier “ripoff”) on its poor citizens. When Love’s crew arrives, Mary insists that she go into town “incognito” to “scope out” the situation. When things go awry, Nat and his gang are caught in a jam. Do they become outlaws to rescue Mary? Either way, the Buck Gang could triumph and make the town a stronghold for the lawless. Sounds like a “showdown” is a-comin’!

An excellent ensemble helps make the West very wild indeed. Heading up the forces of good (well, not as bad as the other “sidewinders”) as Love is the very compelling Major (so great in the recent Disney+ streaming show “Loki”) who proves to be one confident cowbo…er…man. His Love is an excellent leader who backs up his six-gun skills while somehow being several steps ahead of anyone else. His fighting and romantic partner is played with equal part allure and danger by the radiant Beetz (there’s a lady worthy of their “ride into Hell”). Lindo is filed with righteous gravitas as the somber Reeves. Luckily the mood is lightened somewhat by the comic sparring of Gathegi as the usually pessimistic Bill and Cyler’s full of motor-mouthed swagger Jim. Rounding out the “heroic six” is Deadwyler whose Cuffee has a fierce sense of loyalty to offset her often awkward social skills. They’re all “put through the wringer” by the enigmatic Elba as the hulking Buck who quietly hovers over his victims, waiting to strike with unbridled fury, like a simmering powderkeg. King as Trudy seems to be his good “right hand” as she does his bidding while barely suppressing a sadistic smile. Her cohort Cherokee Bill as portrayed by Stanfield is a cold, dead-eyed one-man army, whose banal stare is almost as deadly as his trigger finger (and it’s so itchy). Cole also provides a bit of levity as the ineffectual Wiley whose bellowing bark is much more painful than his bite (even with those shiny gold choppers).

Director Jeymes Samuel, helming the script he co-wrote with Boaz Yakin, brings a lot of kinetic energy to this “horse opera”, mixing the visuals of Sergio Leone with some of the ultra-violent snark of Tarantino (if only his THE HATEFUL EIGHT had this sense of style and brevity). Samuel takes all that we love about the genre and makes it feel somewhat fresh. And there’s a nice sense of history as he uses the names of real Western icons for this fictional fable (I only knew about Reeves via the recent HBO sequel to “The Watchmen”). Yes, some of the humor is hammered into a pulp (the color of a very unfriendly town) and a few scenes seem too weird for the time period (a saloon entertainer painted blue ala’ Mystique from the X-Men would not have “played” well with thirsty cowpokes). Oh, and the carnage of the final “throwdown” is more than a bit mind and backside numbing. However, the cast seems to be having a terrific time ( no matter how old we get, playing “cowboy’ is a blast), and the art direction is top-notch from the saloons and side shops to the wardrobe. Any fans of SILVERADO and THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN should get that same rawhide rush from watching the “souped-up”, hip hop, shoot-em-up’ spectacle of THE HARDER THEY FALL. And when they topple, look out for those popping “blood squibs”.

3 Out of 4

THE HARDER THEY FALL is now playing in select theatres and is streaming exclusively on Netflix