Movie Review - "Hell or High Water"

When I saw the trailer for this movie a few weeks back, and heard Jeff Bridges talking in a West Texas accent thicker than a prime t-bone steak, I knew that this was a movie that I just had to see.  The story concerns two brothers, one an ex-con, who take to robbing a string of small town west Texas banks, but perhaps their motive is a Robin Hood-esque one.  You know, take from the rich, give to the poor.  At least that what a bunch of the poor, down on their luck ranchers and town folk who have been getting screwed by the banks for all these years think.

Bridges plays Marcus Hamilton, a crusty old Texas Ranger with that aforementioned accent who is soon to retire from the force, and he's not happy about it.  The outlaw brothers are played by Ben Foster, the way over-the-top ex-con, and Chris Pine, a handsome hunk of beefcake if ever there was one, who has made his bones in all these recent Star Trek movies.  Both were quite good in it, especially Pine, but it was the sixty-six year old Bridges who was the star, the guy who makes this one worth seeing.

In some ways this movie reminded me of "Fargo" with its mood setting scenes of a desolate landscape, and a bunch of quirky characters including the wild man outlaw, and the resolute lawman who talks with a funny accent.  That's a good thing.

We liked the movie, especially the final scene of the movie between....oops, I'm not going to tell you. That might be considered a spoiler.

Two and one-half stars from The Grandstander on this one (three and one-half stars to Jeff Bridges!).