Killers of the Flower Moon - 210 mins - Drama, Crime - Apple TV +
This is Martin Scorsese’s sixth with Leonardo Di Caprio and the tenth picture with Robert De Niro. It is an eye opening movie depicting greed, betrayal and a systematic evisceration of an entire sect of people. It is set in the times of the First World War in Osage County, Oklahoma. The movie is focuses around the native Indian community who were blessed with immense wealth of culture and tradition (and eventually money, LOTS of it) , due to the discovery of Oil in the region .
De Niro plays “King” Bill Hale - a respected socialite / industrialist in the town who the Osage regard very highly as an ally and friend. Leo plays his nephew Ernest Burkhart, who comes into town after the First World War to find a life . After a very brief courtship, we see him wed Mollie ( Lily Gladstone) - one of four daughters of a wealthy Osage family. As Ernest Burkhart builds his life and family with Mollie, we see one by one members of the Indian community found dead/disappearing/ falling ill sick and something does not feel right.
What unfolds over a labouring 3 hours is how greed, malice, power can make man turn against man. You should read this to know more (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osage_Indian_murder). Interesting this was one of the first cases which was investigated by the government agency which eventually became the FBI !
The movie is certainly not one of Scorsese’s best - the length is not the problem - you miss the swift editing, the razor sharp screenplay and generally so much that happens (Irishman , Casino , the Wolf of Wall Street keep you hooked). The story could have easily been told in 30/40 mins less with the same impact. The setting (costumes, cars, set design, the cinematography are all top notch. The score is very unique - a constant guitar strumming/humming in the background to create the tension through the movie with very few silences!
Leo Di Caprio’s journey from a simple bumbling man to an eventually a willing accomplice to the happenings is good. He has a couple of stunning scenes (when he breaks down on the death of someone close) - but he is OK without being mind blowing. Robert De Niro has fun playing the smart dressing, smooth talking man with ulterior motives. The revelation however is Lily Gladstone - such a pleasant face and such a powerful performance, where the smile slowly starts to shape into pain and anguish is a superb award worthy performance. Quite a slow watch ( I needed 3 sittings) - but if you want to see the times when Native American Indians were rich ( making upwards of 150k USD per annum in 1920s) employing white men and women as helps and drivers - go for it!
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