Shotgun Stories
October. 01,2007 PG-13Shotgun Stories tracks a feud that erupts between two sets of half brothers following the death of their father. Set against the cotton fields and back roads of Southeast Arkansas, these brothers discover the lengths to which each will go to protect their family.
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Reviews
Very best movie i ever watch
Pretty Good
It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.
Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.
You have to wonder why and how step-brothers can hate one another to the point of death. This story will tell you how.
The 4 Tops had it right in 1966 when they sang this song - except this film was not made until 2007!! How did they know? Seriously people a 7.3 rating? Granted the acting was good and the soundtrack appropriate, but classifying this film as a thriller, as my 3 three year old grand daughter would say "is Ridkolous."The plot is slow, the actors talk slow, they move slow, the music is slow, the "action scenes" take literally seconds. (so I guess you could say they were not slow) I understand that things which occur off screen can take on greater depth and imagination, but for that to occur, something has to happen. And not much happens throughout the movie. And amazingly the director must have thought at times too much tension was building, so he even stepped it down a notch or two with even slower music between scenes. For instance, during one scene, a car drives up to the house!!! Now wait a minute, modern audiences can only take so much!! please let us catch our breath!Now some may see great existential meaning in the film - that this gives depth and meaning to the Southern farm experience, etc. etc. etc. Well the only thing I can say to them is Hans Christian Anderson called "BS" on that many years ago with "The Emperor's New Clothes." And then finally, there is the dialogue. Can it be true that people from Arkansas only speak in 2 or 3 word sentences? Well if this is your cup of tea, good for you. As for me and my household, we place this one among the notables of snoozdom: "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull", "Cache", and the all time snoozer: "Boyhood"
Southern American culture is rich in storytelling tradition and part of that is the story of the blood feud. But Shotgun Stories is not about those ancient yokels, the Hatfields and the McCoys, but contemporary families in rural Arkansas.One father, two wives. Two sets of sons. With first wife, father was an alcoholic ne'er to do well who abused his wife. The boys by this wife are poor. He cleaned up his act when he ran off with this second wife and became a farmer. The sons by this wife are middle class. The sets of sons hate each other. The father dies. At his funeral, his first set of sons shows up, brazenly unkempt to spite the well-dressed second set of sons. The oldest makes a speech condemning the father for abandoning them, then spits on the casket. A fist fight breaks out. Vengeance is sworn.And so the movie begins. And blood is shed.The information above about family history does not emerge all at once. Bits are doled out as we get to know the Hayes family, the sons, their wives and girlfriends, friends (some, like Shampoo, disreputable) and their children. An often unmoving camera fixes on the details on these young men's lives, especially the older ones, Son, Kid and Boy (Yes, that's their names).Just about everybody in the movie has known each other since childhood.This is not a fast-paced movie, but the tension builds to almost unbearable levels as retribution leads to worse retribution. Interestingly, the most serious violence occurs off camera. Eventually, a peacemaker emerges in a most unlikely (but maybe not) persona.Shotgun Stories is the kind of movie film festival goers adore. Low budget. Unknown actors. Local color. Rich dialogue. Evocative cinematography.If that's not your bag, stay away. But if it intrigues you, check this out.
Mike Nichols is of a new breed, inspired by a classic breed of stand-up film makers. "Shotgun Stories" is one of those films for those with patience and appreciation of beauty in every day life. When you see those shots of the American landscape through the lens, they are so much more than just this small town where some people happen to live.Gripes with such films is that they aren't entertaining to many people, that nothing really happens or that too little goes on with a dragging pace. If you want to see cars explode and people do drugs, this isn't the film for you."Shotgun Stories" is about two families who share the same Father. He passes away, and the family he left ignites in a battle against the family he was a part of for the second half of his life. The feud is so natural, so human, and so emotional that it is hard to find a way out of it for the boys as they are sent closer to the edge. The only possible answer is what comes next, death.Michael Shannon gives a fantastically reserved performance as Son Hayes, as he has been building on great performances in supporting roles, but getting no recognition for his stand-out lead performance in "Bug". It is clear that he is one to watch.If you are a fan of Terrence Malick, David Gordon Green, or Andrew Dominik's "The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford", this should be on your list to see.Shotgun Stories