Ain't Them Bodies Saints (2013)

Sadly Over-hyped

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

A solid premise and very natural acting highlight this drama. After a fast-paced first half, the film slows down signficantly as Bob Muldoon (Affleck) tries to make his way back home, but it nevertheless remains interesting. This is essentially a sad love story, but in a very different way. Truly moving. The film is shot very differently to mainstream Hollywood films and I enjoyed the fact director David Lowery leaves a lot to the viewer's imagination, instead of spoon feeding them.

My wife and I watched this at home via Netflix streaming. It is set primarily in Texas but filmed mainly in the areas around Shreveport, Louisiana. It is about a young couple in love, with many similarities to Bonnie and Clyde. Based on the suitcase of money we see much later it is evident that some bank heists must have been involved. The couple are cornered at an old house and there is a shoot out, an officer is killed. With no outside witnesses that the girlfriend actually did the shooting, then the boyfriend takes responsibility and ends up in prison. Just about the time that his girlfriend is pregnant. It was only a matter of time before he managed to escape and head back home to be with her and to meet his young daughter. So most of the movie is the hunt for him, and their attempts to escape to a place far away with the suitcase of money to start a new life.The characters are played well by Rooney Mara as Ruth Guthrie and Ben's younger brother, Casey Affleck as Bob Muldoon. Interesting and mostly entertaining, but will not go down as one of my favorites.

I have always enjoyed Casey Affleck, so when I found he was starring in this movie (streaming on Netflix, no less) I figured I'd take a chance. I'm happy to say that I wasn't disappointed . . . at least not terribly. This hackneyed story of a troubled love affair gone bad is fairly predictable, but the superb acting by Affleck, Rooney Mara ("The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"), and Ben Foster, together with the "show, don't tell" screenplay by writer/director David Lowery, set it apart from lesser versions.Probably best known for his villainous role in "3:10 to Yuma," Foster does a great job with his role as a forgiving police officer, shot by the wife of character Bob Muldoon (Affleck), during a siege following a robbery. Muldoon takes the rap for his wife, and goes to prison, only to escape four years later, in an attempt be reunited with his wife, Ruth, and the couple's four-year-old daughter, born while he was "inside."A compelling, hypnotic musical score by Daniel Hart, dark, moody cinematography by Bradford Young, and a strong-but-understated performance by veteran actor Keith Carradine (why doesn't he get more work?) and you almost have a perfect movie - almost. What's missing is the back story. It's there - you just have to search for it, and there's a lot missing. We could have cared so much more about these characters, had it been revealed. Unfortunately, the bond that could have been made between the viewer and the film's characters never quite solidifies - and that' a shame.Regardless of its shortcomings, "Ain't Them Bodies Saints" is a film worth seeing, even if it's not quite perfect. Streaming worked for me, and it'll probably work for you!

As they wave their guns around and avoid thinking about the terrible consequences that will eventually befall them, outlaws are always having a good time. Prancing on the wrong side of the tracks with psychotic ecstasy, there are only whens and wheres embedded in their actions, no what ifs — perhaps that's why outlaws always end up (a) burning in hell after a determined policeman finally gets revenge or (b) rotting in a dirty prison cell for the rest of their lives. Movies with a pair of career criminals as their focus tend to be romanticized, all fun and games until karma catches up and slaps around the anti-heroes we should be calling bad guys. Crimes are perfumed with a nearly erotic scent.Ain't Them Bodies Saints mulls the aftermath of those said crimes. The Sugarland Express ended with only one survivor, and Bonnie and Clyde ended with, well, no survivors. But what if both perpetrators lived, one going to prison while the other ran free? Ain't Them Bodies Saints is the mature cousin of the gangster film; most of us would prefer to watch the fun and games, not the consequences. The second feature from director David Lowery, the film takes the best components from Terrence Malick's peak years and steadily heightens into something painstakingly rousing.Ruth Guthrie (Rooney Mara) and Bob Muldoon (Casey Affleck) are young, in love, and making a living as small-time crooks in a rustic Southern town. Ruth is a realist, but Bob is a romantic; when she discovers that she is pregnant, Bob believes that, despite their frequent illegal activities, they will soon become a picturesque version of the American family. But when they are involved in a shootout following a robbery, Ruth accidentally wounds an officer. In order to let her raise the coming child in peace, Bob takes the blame. Four years later, he escapes from prison, hoping to renew his life once again; but when he comes home, he finds that Ruth has moved on and is now beginning a romance with the man she shot all those years ago.Before the early bulleted encounter that changes the course of Ain't Them Bodies Saints, there is an impression that we are about to witness a Badlands 2.0 of sorts, a deep-dish of romanticized crime and doomed love. Lowery takes us one direction, but then side-steps the usual hackneyed activities. These characters don't live in the enticing melancholy of an Elvis ballad; tragedy is tragedy, romance is damned. The plot ferments in a metal pot of tempestuous quiet, building and building until the banalities of life itself do the most damage.Ain't Them Bodies Saints is deceivingly uncomplicated, using only escalating claps, rickety snare taps, and subdued strings for its score while watching its characters with the concern of a psychiatrist. The lack of commotion, however, makes the film all the more exhilarating. As we examine Ruth evolve from a confused cheat to a responsible mother, a universal truth ensues, showing us that even people with the most shameful of pasts can move on. As Bob stays the same, believing that four years away from Ruth will change nothing, our heart breaks. This is not the outlaw film we've gotten to know over the years; this is something in a completely different league and mindset. Lowery has made a minor masterpiece that only assures us that even better things are to come. With Affleck and Mara perfectly cast as two souls who begin the same but stray away from each other as they age, Ain't Them Bodies Saints is a slow-burning but utterly intoxicating experience. You want to bathe in it. Read more reviews at petersonreviews.com