themorethemurrier

I have loved this movie for years. It's one of only a dozen or so that I felt compelled to actually purchase, and I often recommend and lend it to friends and coworkers who haven't heard of it. Upon return, they generally suggest that there's something wrong with me for including this in my all time favorites, but always concede that they enjoyed it.

It is hilarious, but it's a dark, dark comedy. Every performance is solid, and you will find yourself quoting some of the funnier lines to others when you try to explain to them why they, too, should watch this messed up but delightfully amusing tale.

I'll not waste your time with a lengthy review of the plot; you can find that any number of other places. I will give you a warning that it is a rated R movie for a reason. I'd recommended it to a close girlfriend years ago when she was in college. She picked it for a coed movie night with a hundred or so folks...and it was apparently a bit racier than there normal fare. (They whistled and jeered, she blushed and was mortified, but everyone loved it.)

I wanted to love this movie. With a trailer that felt like Fargo (minus the snow), I was confident it would make for an enjoyable Saturday night. Cut Bank is no Fargo. But it's hardly awful. Malkovich, Dern, Platt and Thornton deliver good performances; the plot moves along somewhat predictably, but nicely none the less.

Watching it, I was reminded of Clay Pigeons, and this actually helped me figure out what was troubling me about the movie: Hemsworth is no Joaquin Phoenix. He doesn't seem committed, and the viewer, in turn, finds it hard to commit to him.

Fortunately, the other performances carry the show and the ending brings an adequately satisfying payoff for your time in Cut Bank.