Stream it on HBO Max.
One of the things that can become increasingly noticeable as a film critic is when specific directors & writers become synonymous with quality and effort. People who seem incapable of delivering a terrible product even if they want to. In recent years, names like Leigh Whannell and Mike Flannigan have become the golden standard for proper horror cinema and gripping ghost stories. Today's film, Those Who Wish Me Dead, once again showcases the incredible and indistinguishable talent of one Taylor Sheridan, who is, in this critic's opinion, the golden standard for what can best be described as gruff & gritty stories with smarts and lots of heart.
Based on the book of the same title by Michael Koryta, the story follows a firefighter named Hannah (Angelina Jolie), who has been reassigned to a fire tower watch person after a traumatic event with a previous forest fire incident. Things seem rather stale and dull until she comes across a twelve-year-old boy named Connor (Finn Little), who is on the run from some dangerous and incredibly evil people. It turns out that Connor's father was a witness of sorts to some shady business and was killed before he could say anything about it. The bad guys are under the assumption that the boy knows enough to send them and their boss to jail, so they set about finding the boy to silence him. To keep the authorities off their trail, the bad guys start a fresh forest fire which heads towards the tower. Now, Hannah must find a way to take Connor to safety while facing her own personal demons in the process.
As I alluded to before, this film is loaded with smart writing and competent direction. One can expect nothing less from Taylor Sheridan, whom some of you may recall as the mind behind Hell or High Water and Wind River (my best film of 2017). Mr. Sheridan seems to specialize in movies that are essentially modern westerns: set in the rural country following mostly morally grey characters on an important mission for justice with a few firefights sprinkled here and there for good measure. However, unlike most of the spaghetti westers that Taylor Sheridan seems to draw most of his inspiration from, he has the good sense to keep everything engaging with smart characters and witty dialogue. More often than not, movies like this will have characters make stupid and contrived decisions purely for the sake of progressing the plot regardless of how little sense it makes, but not Taylor Sheridan. He puts in the effort to ensure that every move made by a character makes sense and is smart. If the "why don't they call the cops?" trope was a person, Taylor Sheridan would never invite it to his parties.
The cast is remarkable all around. Angelina Jolie delivers her usual professional and badass conviction you would expect. She delivers her character's flaws and strengths perfectly and still looks awesome in the process. Although, the MVP award goes straight to the young boy, Finn Little. He not only has the honor of playing a kid character who is not at all annoying or anger-inducing (like some others I could mention), but his performance is spot-on and deserves to award this kid more work should he want it. This kid showcases his talent and conviction beautifully.
While Those Who Wish Me Dead isn't likely going to become my new favorite movie with Taylor Sheridan's name on it, it is a solid piece of work that reminds us why we like this guy. I look forward to whatever his next film may be in the future. In the meantime, absolutely check this film out. It'll provide the right amount of everything needed for a good time at the movies.
Ladies & gentlemen, I am TheNorm; thank you all for reading.
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