Wind River - Review
Director: Taylor Sheridan
Cast: Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen
Scribe of the immensely successful Sicario and Hell or High Water, Taylor Sheridan finally steps behind the camera with Wind River. A cold (literally) mystery starring two Avengers MVPs, Sheridan's directorial debut has its finger on the pulse of American social issues whilst simultaneously engaging the audience with its thrilling and emotional core.
On the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming, US Fish and Wildlife Service agent Cory Lambert (Jeremy Renner) discovers the body of 18-year old Natalie Hanson (Kelsey Chow), a resident of the reservation. FBI special agent Jane Banner (Elizabeth Olsen) arrives and enlists the help of Cory to investigate what happened to Natalie.
Wind River is certainly a mystery and a whodunnit but the narrative itself does not contain a lot of twists and turns designed to keep audiences continually guessing or throw them off the scent, so to speak. The opening prologue shows us Natalie running through the snow at night, barefoot and bloodied and panicked as she desperately flees whoever has caused her harm. From there on, as Jane and Cory valiantly attempt to solve the case, we're as in the dark as they are as they uncover clues and are given insightful information pertinent to the investigation from evidence supplied by Natalie's brother and their surrounding environment. Adding to the difficulty of resolving the case are individual character traits - Banner is an agent stationed in Las Vegas, unprepared for the challenges that the Wind River Indian Reservation poses. Lambert, although an expert hunter with unparalleled knowledge of the area, must reconcile with the emotions that Natalie's death has stirred as his own teenage daughter died under suspicious circumstances three years prior.
Sheridan continues to further his reputation as a write who grounds character drama in deceptively simple plots and employs this winning device in Wind River, allowing for his characters to breathe life into the story and enhancing the emotions, complexity and issues that it engenders. Although Jane Banner has echoes of Emily Blunt's character in Sicario, there are enough differences between the two (including Jane's sense of humour and less tortured state) for Banner not to feel like a carbon copy. Renner's role of Cory Lambert is beautifully crafted as a man who is surviving with the pain of losing a child in a landscape where survival itself is a struggle. The dialogue is near-poetic and the violence can be brutally savage, but neither are overwhelming to the point of distraction as Sheridan never sacrifices the integrity of the genre in favour of the intimate character study - both are served and given equal importance.
Transitioning to the role of a director comes with many challenges but Sheridan adapts with complete ease and demonstrates another one of his greatest strengths is directing actors. His two leads, Renner and Olsen, give movingly understated performances. A particular scene in which Cory unburdens himself of the story of his daughter's demise to a silently composes Jane is heartbreakingly naturalistic and both actors involved are masterfully subtle; as a result, it's one of the most effective scenes in the film. The bursts of action are also admirably directed, successfully ratcheting up the tension and raising the stakes to a nail-biting degree.
A confident and assured first directorial feature from one of the most talented writers working today, Wind River boasts strong performances and a script filled with thrills and emotionally resonant character moments. It's not to be missed.
EB
Cast: Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen
Scribe of the immensely successful Sicario and Hell or High Water, Taylor Sheridan finally steps behind the camera with Wind River. A cold (literally) mystery starring two Avengers MVPs, Sheridan's directorial debut has its finger on the pulse of American social issues whilst simultaneously engaging the audience with its thrilling and emotional core.On the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming, US Fish and Wildlife Service agent Cory Lambert (Jeremy Renner) discovers the body of 18-year old Natalie Hanson (Kelsey Chow), a resident of the reservation. FBI special agent Jane Banner (Elizabeth Olsen) arrives and enlists the help of Cory to investigate what happened to Natalie.
Wind River is certainly a mystery and a whodunnit but the narrative itself does not contain a lot of twists and turns designed to keep audiences continually guessing or throw them off the scent, so to speak. The opening prologue shows us Natalie running through the snow at night, barefoot and bloodied and panicked as she desperately flees whoever has caused her harm. From there on, as Jane and Cory valiantly attempt to solve the case, we're as in the dark as they are as they uncover clues and are given insightful information pertinent to the investigation from evidence supplied by Natalie's brother and their surrounding environment. Adding to the difficulty of resolving the case are individual character traits - Banner is an agent stationed in Las Vegas, unprepared for the challenges that the Wind River Indian Reservation poses. Lambert, although an expert hunter with unparalleled knowledge of the area, must reconcile with the emotions that Natalie's death has stirred as his own teenage daughter died under suspicious circumstances three years prior.
Sheridan continues to further his reputation as a write who grounds character drama in deceptively simple plots and employs this winning device in Wind River, allowing for his characters to breathe life into the story and enhancing the emotions, complexity and issues that it engenders. Although Jane Banner has echoes of Emily Blunt's character in Sicario, there are enough differences between the two (including Jane's sense of humour and less tortured state) for Banner not to feel like a carbon copy. Renner's role of Cory Lambert is beautifully crafted as a man who is surviving with the pain of losing a child in a landscape where survival itself is a struggle. The dialogue is near-poetic and the violence can be brutally savage, but neither are overwhelming to the point of distraction as Sheridan never sacrifices the integrity of the genre in favour of the intimate character study - both are served and given equal importance.
Transitioning to the role of a director comes with many challenges but Sheridan adapts with complete ease and demonstrates another one of his greatest strengths is directing actors. His two leads, Renner and Olsen, give movingly understated performances. A particular scene in which Cory unburdens himself of the story of his daughter's demise to a silently composes Jane is heartbreakingly naturalistic and both actors involved are masterfully subtle; as a result, it's one of the most effective scenes in the film. The bursts of action are also admirably directed, successfully ratcheting up the tension and raising the stakes to a nail-biting degree.
A confident and assured first directorial feature from one of the most talented writers working today, Wind River boasts strong performances and a script filled with thrills and emotionally resonant character moments. It's not to be missed.
EB
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