As Martin Scorsese gets older, he gets better, and his understanding of life, cinema and things around him seems to reach new heights. Throughout his unbelievably long and successful career, he was always fascinated with morality and bad people, showing them to us so uniquely that many (to this day) believe that he somehow glamorises gangsters and crooks. That couldn’t be far from the truth, and Killers of the Flower Moon is another jewel in that specific jewellery box full of flawed characters, corruption, and murders, but underneath all that, humanity.
This film was something extra from the first minutes; Scorsese’s affinity for old cinema shines through as he mixes the visuals of the days past (4:3 aspect ratio along with title cards instead of dialogue for a few scenes) and then swiftly goes “modern”, showing us stunning visuals, many of which you could frame and put on your wall. But he understands (and it seems like he almost feels) that he has a duty to tell this story “right”. This true story of Native Americans getting rich only to be screwed by white people is as old as America. But, in this story, we have this unique element. The focus is on the marriage of two characters from different worlds, Ernest (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Mollie (Lily Gladstone). He is an older white man who came back from the war; she is a Native American woman who is suspicious of him at first, but eventually, they fall in love and marry each other. And despite his character plotting behind her back to kill her and her entire family, he… loves her? Talk about murky waters.
That is the main crux of this film. Killers of the Flower Moon shows us this naïve, one could almost say stupid, character portrayed by Leonardo and how he is nothing else but a pawn in this game of death chess controlled by his uncle, played by Robert De Niro. Both put on one of the best performances of their careers, especially in De Niro’s case; I don’t think I have seen him at this level for over a decade. He is truly a menacing driving force behind everything that happens in this film, and the way he manipulates every one around him and pretends to be “the best friend” of Native Americans in this movie is chilling. Leonardo also delivers a great performance, but he, by default, needs to shine slightly less, as it’s not his usual larger-than-life performance piece. It’s more nuanced, where you see in this man throughout this movie that deep down, he loves his wife and knows what he is doing to her family is wrong. But he is too weak to stop, to stand up to his uncle and do what he thinks is best. You need Leo firing at all cylinders for this film to hit you because he might be one of the most complex characters ever, as he needs to convince you how someone can claim to love his wife whilst doing everything he’s told against her and her family. I thought Leo nailed it because, in the end, I had no doubts that he wasn’t a great person (the real-life Ernest). But also, I had no doubts about him loving his wife and how his simple mind helped him separate these two things.
But, the main star of this movie and the person you will remember the most is Lily Gladstone. Famously, she was applying for an IT job, as she thought there would never be any big break in her career when she got the email to read for Martin Scorsese via Zoom. Lily puts everything she has and then some into this film and leaves a piece of herself in this movie. Her performance was stellar, from the beginning, where we see her lower her defences to Leo’s charm, throughout her “sickness” scenes where she transformed to the bitter end. Her character had so many memorable and powerful scenes that you will remember her, and I am sure she will be a front-runner for the Oscars next year. And deservedly so. I am happy she finally got her big break and hope to see her in many more movies to come, even though an IT career is nothing to be ashamed of (as someone who works within that sector ;-)).
I also loved the ending, better said, the last two minutes or so. And even though I wouldn’t consider it a spoiler per se, I will not reveal what I am talking about because I wasn’t expecting how this movie finished, so I want you to have the same “surprise”. Looking back at it now, it makes so much sense, given how the movie started and how Marty took everything about this film seriously. There is a fine line between being a “white saviour” and giving voice to the voiceless. I thought this movie (and therefore, Martin Scorsese) never crossed it, and it fulfilled the purpose of this film, highlighting how much this community suffered. And the way he does it throughout the movie is excellent, but the last two minutes just underline it and make it more meaningful.
The only reason I am holding off on the highest rating is simple. I don’t know whether it was the runtime or something else, but something didn’t click with me fully. This movie is so dense I will have to rewatch it, and I wouldn’t be surprised if, during my rewatch, I would appreciate it much more. Killers of the Flower Moon is definitely one of those you can’t “digest” all in one sitting, as the movie is complex, and I think it’s almost mandatory to go back and immerse yourself in this world again to appreciate it fully. Therefore, I wouldn’t even consider this as a critique; this was me possibly missing something, and I know I will rewatch it to formulate my thoughts better. But I already know how much I have enjoyed it, so there is little to no doubt this will go up higher in my rankings upon multiple rewatches.
Overall, Killers of the Flower Moon is one of the most fascinating, raw and beautifully haunting movies Martin Scorsese has ever made. It takes its time to establish everything; it isn’t afraid to show you complex characters whilst relying on your understanding that this movie never justifies anything these people did to the Native Americans. There is a difference between glamorizing and showing you how a person thinks, and Scorsese proved yet again why he is the master of these complex, dark characters. I wish he has many more years left and he gets to make movies he wants to make.
That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!
Until next time,
Luke
Comment on “Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) Review – Of Monsters and Men”