The Mule

This film was perfectly paced to tell the short but true story of an 80 year old WWII veteran and horticulturist's time as a drug mule for the Mexican Sinaloa Cartel. In reality Leo Sharp smuggled more than a ton of Cocaine into Michigan for $1.25 million and was sentenced to three years in prison, after being caught by the DEA, of which he served one year.

In the film, the real Leo Sharp is named Earl Stone and is portrayed by Clint Eastwood himself, who additionally both directed and produced this project. (Also, One of Eastwood's real life daughters starred as his daughter in the film.). Earl is a day lily horticulturist whose business suffers to the point where his home and farm are being foreclosed on, due to his unwillingness to keep up with the times by way of the internet. By chance he meets a young man who offers him a job delivering a package across state lines at his granddaughter's engagement party, which he jumps at in order to make money to help pay for her wedding and save face with his estranged family.

The film really makes a compelling argument for how he gets started in the business and an even more compelling argument for how he got away with it. As an older gentleman people would never guess that he would be involved and in fact even though the DEA gets pointed right to him and the motel he is staying at...they completely overlook this elderly war veteran.

This was slow paced, but heartfelt and emotional. I think fans of good cinematography will enjoy it, fans of Clint Eastwood will love it and fans of good story telling should watch it. It was nice to see Clint Eastwood starring in this film and playing a character of a similar age.

A Clint Eastwood film is sometimes all you need to remember how much you love great cinema and that's especially true in this case. It's the real life story of an 80-year-old war veteran who, as he finds his livelihood threatened, manages to cross paths with a Mexican drug cartel and winds up transporting their product across the Midwest. As he demonstrates value, his runs become larger and more lucrative each time.

Eastwood portrays Earl Stone, a mild-mannered hardworking horticulturalist who became a champion drug mule for the cartels as law enforcement was completely blind to his low-key but highly effective operations. Enter Bradley Cooper as the dedicated DEA agent who has to muster considerable time and resources to even begin to piece things together and Michael Pena as his partner. Dianne Weist offers a sympathetic turn as Stone's long-suffering ex-wife. Andy Garcia is good fun as the drug lord who is pleased with the old mercenary's hard work.

Although this film covers a grim story, it has a light-hearted feel for many stretches and a refreshing sense of humor. Eastwood himself is absolutely compelling as an old man who suddenly finds himself awash in money from an illegal enterprise and seeing the world from a different angle; here, Clint reminds us how huge a screen presence he has no matter how old he gets.

I'm not sure what many critics have missed with this film but hopefully audiences will take note. Eastwood has given us another great film and one of his best performances ever in this crackerjack drama. Highly recommended.

Truly one of the best movies of the year. It is nerving that the golden globes didn't give Clint Eastwood a nomination for best actor he gave a great preformance and his ensemble gave a solid story a solid story well told.

I had never heard of Leo Sharp before watching "The Mule". What a story. Clint Eastwood (who also directed) plays a fictionalized version of Sharp, smuggling drugs for a cartel partly because it enables him to spend the money benevolently. These moral conundrums arise a lot.

It was a little weird in some scenes, seeing Eastwood surrounded by women a fraction of his age; probably wishful thinking on his part. Even so, the movie shows how the old man got more and more into the business, resulting in some tense incidents. In addition to Eastwood, there's good support from Laurence Fishburne, Bradley Cooper, Dianne Wiest, Andy Garcia and Taissa Farmiga.

When you've got the goods, you've got the goods. Clint Eastwood has the goods in terms of creating, consistently, very good movies. Movies that move you, make you think - and most of all - enjoy a coupe hours of your life.

He's the got the Midas Touch. I don't think I've ever watched a Clint Eastwood movie I disliked, and I'm picky.

This movie revolves around a topic so near and dear to all of us: family. It highlights that none of us are perfect, some more than others, but in the end - redemption and forgiveness are there for even the worst of us.

He elegantly, again, makes a movie for an older actor that works, and works really well.

Do yourself a favor and watch this movie, you won't be sorry. Clint Eastwood is a master of his trade, and this movie - like so many of his before - clearly shows that.