Absent from cinemas since “Silence” in 2016, Martin Scorsese returns with a thriller inspired by true events, a story of oil, assassinations and Indians.
Killers of the Flower Moon had divided critics during its out-of-competition screening in Cannes. Passed to the series with Vinyl, Fran Lebowitz, or Boardwalk EmpireMartin Scorsese had already not enthused with Silenceon the Christianization of Japan in the 17th century, his last film shown in theaters. The Irishman (2019) on Netflix, as well as the pilot of its series Vinyl (HBO) were on the other hand pure Scorsese. Killers of the Flower Moonmade for Apple TV, but in theaters on Wednesday October 18 in France, on a fantastic subject, is a little static, which is not what the director of Taxi Driver.
Corner exchanges
In 1920, the discovery of oil in the Osage Indian reservation (Oklahoma) in the United States brought them a colossal fortune. Like many other white people, William Hale (Robert De Niro) intrigues to extract this monumental windfall from their owners. He manipulates his nephew Ernest Burkhart (Leonardo DiCaprio) into marrying a local, Mollie Kyle (Lily Gladston), to achieve his ends. His maneuvers went as far as the assassination of several Indians, leading to the intervention of the federal authorities on the reserve.
Inspired by the work of American journalist David Grann The American Note (Pocket), Killers of the Flower Moon, which tells this true and little-known story, does not quite correspond to what one could expect from Martin Scorsese. The 3h26 of the film is hardly justified, fueled by dominant dialogues and corner table exchanges, in a filming that is not very daring. The plot is more through words than through images, while Scorsese is a master of staging.
Unbalanced mounting
If Killers of the Flower Moon sets its plot well against the backdrop of a sumptuous reconstruction of the 1920s, the film errs in talkative scenes which are to the detriment of the action. DiCaprio plays a simpleton under the influence of a manipulative De Niro without nuance. Both play somewhat monolithic roles which, once defined, hardly evolve. Martin Scorsese is not accustomed to such chatter. In addition, the unbalanced construction of the story is reminiscent of a series reassembled for the big screen. Through negligence, it discredits the hard work done by the FBI to arrest white people on Indian territory. An unpopular mission in a United States that emerged from the last Indian wars in 1890. For these presumptuous whites, the discovery of this gigantic oil windfall is unworthy of the locals. But it could be the icing on the cake of their extermination.
If the subject is fascinating, its treatment is more television than cinematographic, despite a beautiful reconstruction and a prestigious casting. The interpreter of Molly, Lily Gladston, gives a remarkable performance as an Indian victim methodically poisoned slowly. It is like a metaphor for the destiny reserved for the Native American people: their eradication. The appearance of Martin Scorsese at the end of the film is touching during a well-orchestrated scene, but it does not make up for the shortcomings of a Killers of the Flower Moon with mixed results.
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The sheet
Gender : Thriller / Drama
Director: Martin Scorsese
Actors: Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Jesse Plemons, Lily Gladston, Jesse Piemons
Country : UNITED STATES
Duration : 3h26
Exit : October 18, 2023
Distributer : Paramount Pictures France