Every culture has their own popular figure of the noble outlaw. The British, of course, have Robin Hood, while the Croatians have Andrijica Šimić. Meanwhile, the Lithuanians look up to Tadas Blinda and the Japanese tell stories about Nezumi Kozō. In the United States though, the western badit named Jesse James is frequently treated with a kind of reverence not normally given to a man that killed 19 people then robbed them of their valuables. When he was killed on April 3rd, 1882 by Robert Ford, James’ status as a legendary figure in America’s Wild West was secured, while that man that eventually killed him would became vilified as a coward.
This is the story of The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, a deliberate and exacting semi-historical account of the events that led to that fateful April day in Missouri. The story picks up in 1880, when Ford (Oscar-nominated Casey Affleck) and his brother Charles (Sam Rockwell) hook up with the infamous James-Young gang led by the renowned criminal Jesse James (Brad Pitt).
Both Ford Brothers become members of the gang, helping loot a train full of passengers of their wallets and jewellery. Over time though, Bob Ford develops a love/hate relationship with James and the brothers eventually find themselves in the position to arrest James on behalf of the government. Things don’t turn out that way, however.
The story of Assassination, more or less fits the traditional and iconic portrayal of the James legend as well as how Bob Ford fit into that storyline: The Ford Brothers were overeager volunteers for the James-Young gang, Bob idolized James but has difficulty reconciling the hero of his youth with the villain he’s fell in with.
But these men are neither one thing nor the other; there is goodness in James and there is a streak of morality in Ford. It’s the grey areas in which these men live that make the movie itself so compelling. All the hesitations, the last minute decisions and the catastrophic collision of perception versus reality are what drive this narrative forward.
The trouble is it doesn’t drive forward very fast. There innumerable long pauses in the film between developments and while I have the patience to sit through them, I hate to feel I’m just sitting there waiting for stuff to happen. But at these moments, it’s the performances that win you back over. Pitt as James is far from archetypal, he’s old, he’s tired and maybe he’s just a little bit insane. Pitt sort of reminded me here as a dialled back version of his character from 12 Monkeys – the frightening genius displaced by madness.
But frankly, playing troubled and disturbed are character traits I know Pitt was capable of portraying. The real story here is the Oscar-nominated Affleck, who combined with his role in big brother’s Gone Baby Gone, has carved out quite a year in acting for himself.
Affleck’s Ford is sympathetic and conflicted; a man in over his head who’s reasons for killing James were as complicated as the man himself. When the fateful moment comes there’s sense of hesitation and fear on the part of Ford; meanwhile, Pitt plays James like he’s almost expecting a shot in the back from Ford, taking off his gun in a purposeful manner while turning to straighten the picture as if saying to Ford, “I’m giving you an opening.” It’s a fascinating scene to watch on many levels and Affleck exploits it for all the dramatic juice he muster, even mirroring the emotion of James when Ford faces his own bitter end at that movie’s conclusion.
The film is a demanding venture in terms of attention and patience, but it is so well-crafted I have a hard time begrudging it. As bleak as the Missouri landscape (which, incidentally, was really Alberta), then combined with a minimalist score by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis of the Bad Seed, Assassination is good, but some prodigious editing would have made it a masterpiece.
