Z/Web

At the end of this movie as we were leaving the theatre, I heard another view say, “Well, it’s no Unforgiven.” I started laughing, for that was exactly what I’d been thinking. It sure feels a lot like Unforgiven, but it doesn’t live up to that classic. It’s still a good movie and an above average Western. It’s got some unusual characterizations that I found fascinating, especially the character of the woman (Renee Zellweger in a terrific performance) who is so confused even she isn’t sure what she is. Is she a whore, a lover, or a wife? Which does she want the most? She’s a tragic figure, extremely sympathetic, though we don’t like what she does (she doesn’t either but does it anyway). The other thing I found intriguing is that the film ends happily. I was totally expecting a grim “there will be blood” violent and tragic conclusion to everything, but instead the film unexpectedly has everything work out for the best. Yet the ending is not at all artificial or forced; it’s just clever and appropriate. Others will write about the mood of this film, the great acting, the slender storyline, the cool action, and maybe some other positives and negatives, and they’re probably right in whatever they say. I still liked the film, though it was overlong and had moments of dullness, but while it tries hard, this movie doesn’t quite measure up to Unforgiven.

I read some critics dissing this because of the subject — the invention of the intermittent windshield wiper — but that’s exactly what made me want to watch it! First, I love inventions, and even something so inoccuous as the intermittent wiper still requires genius. Second, I remember hearing about this case on the news when the guy one the lawsuit against Ford. I didn’t remember the details, but I remember at the time thinking that it sounded like a cool story. The film overdramatizes things a bit, having the loving-but-exasperated wife leaving the husband because he’s so obsessed with winning his lawsuit against Ford, and of course the story’s somewhat predictable and tries too hard to make up for that with style and drama, which just weakens the content that is there. The film’s 30 minutes too long and tends to feel more like a TV movie than a big screen feature. All that said, however, it has some compelling characters, excellent acting, a good story, and a happy ending. I liked it, though I wouldn’t call it a classic.