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Out of the Furnace
Out of the Furnace is a pretentious and sluggish 2013 film that starts off as a somewhat interesting character study but eventually deteriorates into a standard crime drama that takes way too long to get where it's going.
Russell and Rodney Blaze are a pair of angry brothers trying to start their lives over in the small milling town they grew up in. Russell is returning to town after doing some serious jail time and Rodney is returning after four tours in Iraq. Russell gets his job back at the mill and is distressed to learn that his girlfriend has moved on with the sheriff. Rodney owes a local bar owner a lot of money and is trying to work off the debt participating in bare-knuckle fist fights.
Rodney sets his eye on a big prize courtesy of a career criminal named Harlan DeGroat who specializes in drugs and gambling. Not long after hooking up with DeGroat, Rodney disappears and when the local police don't seem to be getting anywhere trying to find out what happened, Russell decides to take the law into his hands.
Director and co-screenwriter Scott Cooper shows some real promise as a filmmaker here but he definitely needs to work on his writing. The story starts out interestingly enough as we watch these brothers trying to resume their normal life, including their love for each other, strengthened by the passing of their father, but once Rodney disappears, the story becomes another one of those standard cat and mouse games between Russell and DeGroat where the bad guy always seems to stay two steps ahead of the good guy and when that inevitable showdown does occur, it's a big let down that we had to wait WAY too long for. I also found the introduction to the character of DeGroat in a drive-in movie theater very strange
Cooper's direction is stronger than his screenplay. He shows some real style with a movie camera creating some stark and original cinematic pictures that will be hard to erase from my mind. There's this fantastic shot of Russell standing at the door of DeGroat's house waiting to go in while way in the background you see something coming over the hilltop and you're startled to see it's about two dozen cops with rifles. It reminded me of the tanks coming over the hill to attack Judas in 1973's Jesus Christ Superstar. I also loved the shot of Russell with his head down standing on the small bridge after he learns it's over with his girlfriend. It should also be mentioned that Rodney's fight scenes are expertly photographed and edited.
Cooper also got himself a pretty solid cast to serve his vision. Oscar winner Christian Bale is fine as Russell and Woody Harrelson sizzles as DeGroat, but if the truth be told, Oscar winner Casey Affleck walks off with this movie with his explosive Rodney and honestly, remaining invested in this story became a lot more difficult after Rodney's screentime ended. Cooper does show promise here, but the parts are definitely better than the whole.
Out of the Furnace is a pretentious and sluggish 2013 film that starts off as a somewhat interesting character study but eventually deteriorates into a standard crime drama that takes way too long to get where it's going.
Russell and Rodney Blaze are a pair of angry brothers trying to start their lives over in the small milling town they grew up in. Russell is returning to town after doing some serious jail time and Rodney is returning after four tours in Iraq. Russell gets his job back at the mill and is distressed to learn that his girlfriend has moved on with the sheriff. Rodney owes a local bar owner a lot of money and is trying to work off the debt participating in bare-knuckle fist fights.
Rodney sets his eye on a big prize courtesy of a career criminal named Harlan DeGroat who specializes in drugs and gambling. Not long after hooking up with DeGroat, Rodney disappears and when the local police don't seem to be getting anywhere trying to find out what happened, Russell decides to take the law into his hands.
Director and co-screenwriter Scott Cooper shows some real promise as a filmmaker here but he definitely needs to work on his writing. The story starts out interestingly enough as we watch these brothers trying to resume their normal life, including their love for each other, strengthened by the passing of their father, but once Rodney disappears, the story becomes another one of those standard cat and mouse games between Russell and DeGroat where the bad guy always seems to stay two steps ahead of the good guy and when that inevitable showdown does occur, it's a big let down that we had to wait WAY too long for. I also found the introduction to the character of DeGroat in a drive-in movie theater very strange
Cooper's direction is stronger than his screenplay. He shows some real style with a movie camera creating some stark and original cinematic pictures that will be hard to erase from my mind. There's this fantastic shot of Russell standing at the door of DeGroat's house waiting to go in while way in the background you see something coming over the hilltop and you're startled to see it's about two dozen cops with rifles. It reminded me of the tanks coming over the hill to attack Judas in 1973's Jesus Christ Superstar. I also loved the shot of Russell with his head down standing on the small bridge after he learns it's over with his girlfriend. It should also be mentioned that Rodney's fight scenes are expertly photographed and edited.
Cooper also got himself a pretty solid cast to serve his vision. Oscar winner Christian Bale is fine as Russell and Woody Harrelson sizzles as DeGroat, but if the truth be told, Oscar winner Casey Affleck walks off with this movie with his explosive Rodney and honestly, remaining invested in this story became a lot more difficult after Rodney's screentime ended. Cooper does show promise here, but the parts are definitely better than the whole.