The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018) Review
"Sir, it seems that you are a no better judge of human beings than you are a specimen of one."
-Buster Scruggs
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is an anthology film from the Cohen Brothers. It features six different shorts that all have to do with the old west and each feature the dark humor and odd characters that the Cohen Brothers are known for.
What Works:
The first short follows Buster Scruggs (Tim Blake Nelson), a happy-go-lucky outlaw that doesn't really act like one until he has to. This short is the best of the six hands-down. Tim Blake Nelson is fantastic as the singing cowboy and he's a treat to watch. Buster Scruggs is a really fun character who can never avoid trouble. I would love a feature length movie about this guy and what we get here is fantastic.
The second short follows a bank robber (James Franco) who tries to rob a kooky bank teller (Stephen Root) and runs into endless trouble in the aftermath of the robbery. This is probably the second best short and also the shortest. Franco and Root are both really fun and the story reminds of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek", but funnier in a dark and sick sort of way.
The 4th short is one of the stranger ones. It follows a gold prospector (Tom Waits) and his methodical search for a pocket of gold. Waits, as expected, gives an odd performance, but you quickly find yourself rooting for this guy as he looks for the gold. It's a very methodical piece and most of it is simply Waits digging and panning for gold, but it's also really interesting and has an excellent finale.
The 5th short is the longest one and isn't perfect, which I'll get to, but I still enjoyed it. It follows Alice Longabaugh (Zoe Kazan) as she journeys west in a covered wagon on the Oregon Trail. It focuses on the relationship between Alice and Billy Knapp (Bill Heck), one of the leaders of the wagon train. It's a sweet story and I found myself very invested in it. The short also has an excellent climax that is very exciting and emotional.
The final short is another quick one. It takes place almost entirely inside of a stagecoach and is simply about the conversations of the diverse group of passengers. It's an interesting tale that feels like a ghost story and reminds me a bit of The Hateful Eight. One of the passengers is a bounty hunter played by Jonjo O'Neill who gives a charming performance that lights up the screen whenever he is speaking. Everyone does a great job and the atmosphere is excellent, but O'Neill is definitely the standout.
What Sucks:
As I said above, the 5th short about the wagon train isn't perfect. It is a little bit too long for one thing, but the biggest problem is a decision made by Alice that doesn't really make sense. For some reason, she goes a long way away from the wagon train and the reason they give for it is a little lazy. I still like the short, but it's got a few issues.
You may have noticed I did not mention the 3rd short above. That's because I was bored to tears by this one. It follows a young artist with no arms or legs, Harrison (Harry Melling), who recites poetry and stories to entertain. He has an assistant (Liam Neeson) who travels with him as well. The short starts off interesting and Melling gives a solid performance. He played Dudley Dursley in the Harry Potter films and is unrecognizable in this role. But the short drags on for far too long and his performance gets repetitive and, like the audience in the film, my interest began to wane. Towards the end, things start to get interesting only for the film to cut to the next scene, not showing us what could have been a very exciting moment. This short could have been cut completely from the film and it would have been an improvement.
Verdict:
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a solid anthology film. Five of the six shorts are really good even if one of them has some flaws. The Buster Scruggs short alone makes this worth watching, but there's plenty more to enjoy here. It definitely feels like a Cohen Brothers film and, although I didn't care for the 3rd short, this movie has absolutely got it going on.
8/10: Really Good
The 5th short is the longest one and isn't perfect, which I'll get to, but I still enjoyed it. It follows Alice Longabaugh (Zoe Kazan) as she journeys west in a covered wagon on the Oregon Trail. It focuses on the relationship between Alice and Billy Knapp (Bill Heck), one of the leaders of the wagon train. It's a sweet story and I found myself very invested in it. The short also has an excellent climax that is very exciting and emotional.
The final short is another quick one. It takes place almost entirely inside of a stagecoach and is simply about the conversations of the diverse group of passengers. It's an interesting tale that feels like a ghost story and reminds me a bit of The Hateful Eight. One of the passengers is a bounty hunter played by Jonjo O'Neill who gives a charming performance that lights up the screen whenever he is speaking. Everyone does a great job and the atmosphere is excellent, but O'Neill is definitely the standout.
What Sucks:
As I said above, the 5th short about the wagon train isn't perfect. It is a little bit too long for one thing, but the biggest problem is a decision made by Alice that doesn't really make sense. For some reason, she goes a long way away from the wagon train and the reason they give for it is a little lazy. I still like the short, but it's got a few issues.
You may have noticed I did not mention the 3rd short above. That's because I was bored to tears by this one. It follows a young artist with no arms or legs, Harrison (Harry Melling), who recites poetry and stories to entertain. He has an assistant (Liam Neeson) who travels with him as well. The short starts off interesting and Melling gives a solid performance. He played Dudley Dursley in the Harry Potter films and is unrecognizable in this role. But the short drags on for far too long and his performance gets repetitive and, like the audience in the film, my interest began to wane. Towards the end, things start to get interesting only for the film to cut to the next scene, not showing us what could have been a very exciting moment. This short could have been cut completely from the film and it would have been an improvement.
Verdict:
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a solid anthology film. Five of the six shorts are really good even if one of them has some flaws. The Buster Scruggs short alone makes this worth watching, but there's plenty more to enjoy here. It definitely feels like a Cohen Brothers film and, although I didn't care for the 3rd short, this movie has absolutely got it going on.
8/10: Really Good
I found the short with Tom Wait panning for gold to be the most intriguing. Buster Scruggs stole the show and I wish the Cohen Brothers would do a feature length film just on him. Great blog!
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