Lawless

A solid, entertaining, genre flick, Lawless has all the elements of a good western: the town on the edge of civilization, the isolated, tough hero living in his cabin in the woods, the girl who comes to town hiding from her past, and the ruthless deputy who materializes out of nowhere to settle the town under his control.

Tom Hardy

It also follows the conventions of the gangster genre. Set in the 1930s, under prohibition, Lawless follows the story of three brothers whose business is the manufacturing, transportation and sale of illegal alcohol.  It has the bootlegging, the, the machine guns, the suits, the hats, the rags to riches storyline, and the constant threat of death to our heroes. It's no masterpiece; it doesn't seek to reinvent either of the genres. Lawless plays it safe in that regard. However, what makes it worthy is the way this familiar material is handled.

Director John Hillcoat takes his time, carefully establishing the mood of the film. He focuses his attention on the atmosphere of the scenery, showing lingering shots of the woods surrounding the town. There is a dark, unsettling presence. It always feels as if is about to rain. It never does. It snows during a crucial scene. We are told countless times that our heroes, the three Bondurant brothers, are invincible, but we never really believe it. The violence in Lawless is crude, quick, and utterly unexpected. The film is extremely violent, but it's not exploitative.  Hillcoat portrays it as an unflattering reality of the times. However, it is not the violence itself that is most shocking, but the threat that at any time anyone can be attacked and killed, even the indestructible brothers. That is what makes Lawless so powerful.

Jessica Chastain

It also helps to have an immensely talented cast. Tom Hardy, although not the main character, quietly steals the show. He plays the eldest brother, Forrest, who is the leader of the all their activities.  Private and grumbling, he is the subject of a few jokes within the family, but Hardy is able to deliver a stone-cold stare that inspires genuine fear throughout the town (and I suspect among audience members too). Alongside him is Jessica Chastain, luminous as ever, playing Maggie, a girl from Chicago who just wanted to settle down, but who picked the wrong place to do so. I am surprised by how many different roles Chastain has played over her short career. Here, she exudes an admirable, defiant confidence  in scene after scene. The brothers might be invincible, but the toughest character around is Maggie. Also in this insanely talented cast are Mia Wasikowska and Gary Oldman. They are both severely underused.

Shia LaBeouf

The film instead centers on Jack (Shia LaBeouf), the youngest, as he seeks to prove himself tough enough to enter the family business. LaBeouf is outmatched. He's a perfectly capable actor, and could even become great  under the right director, but not here, not while he's anywhere near this cast.

I feel that Lawless should be a three hour masterpiece. It certainly had the potential. In the same way that he managed to build mood, the director should have taken the time to develop more thorough stories around the supporting characters. They were interesting enough to intrigue me, but not rich enough to move me. Still, Lawless is a very good way to spend two hours. Here's hoping for an extended director's cut.

Hardy and Chastain 

Verdict- 3/4
Lawless (2012)R.  1h 57min.

Screenshots from- http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Lawless-Blu-ray/54237/