They say to make a good antagonist, one needs to give them understandable motivations. In David Mackenzie’s contemporary neo-western/crime drama Hell Or High Water, the rowdy Howard brothers from West Texas- the relatively more measured Toby (Chris Pine) and the immature and impulsive Tanner (Ben Foster) certainly fit the bill.
In a desperate bid to save the ranch of their recently passed mother from foreclosure, they undergo a series of bank robberies in the hopes of paying off the reverse mortgage. As it turns out, there’s a considerable amount of black gold, Texas Tea bubbling under their land, and they’re gonna take advantage of it to ensure their family has a better life.
But hot on their heels are the droll but determined Marcus Hamilton, played by Jeff Bridges with a mix of old school cowboy grit and a wry sense of humor, and his relatively more grounded partner Alberto Parker (portrayed by Gil Birmingham). Looking forward to a hard earned retirement, Marcus frequently teases his half Native American friend Alberto with Indian jokes, but it’s hardly out of malice or ignorance- his character, as evident by the script, is quite aware of modern sensibilities.
The two have a number of funny moments together, especially in one scene involving them sitting down at a local diner and encountering the waitress from hell. They also share some rather insightful exchanges as they pursuit the bandit siblings, with Alberto pointing out the similarities between how the banks stole from everyday people, in the same way whites took the American Indians’ land.
Indeed, there’s a heavy undercurrent of populist anger that fuels Tanner and Toby’s desperation, and that same frustration runs through the film as a whole. But Hell Or High Water avoids any sense of political preaching with said populism, more content to focus on its characters and how they contend with an environment that limits one’s opportunity. And the two duos’ gradual progression is a delight to watch, as they clearly care about each other regardless of their differences.
The Howard brothers are neither entirely glamorous rogue heroes or bumbling fools, just two everyday people who feel they’ve run out of options. Pine’s boyish charm comes through in many scenes and his Toby is a good straight man in comparison to his brother, but he’s more than capable of being impulsive and making mistakes. Foster doesn’t quite go overboard as Tanner, but he’s obviously the more reckless of the two and still gets to show significantly more personality than he did in Warcraft.
As a whole, the atmosphere of the film is a hybrid of noirish grit with a sense of humanity and empathy, both for its heroes and villains. When the two Texas Rangers are jabbing each other verbally or the Howards are having a genuine brotherly moment playing around as if they were little kids, it makes the inevitable outbursts of violence and chaos that more meaningful.
In spite of its understated humor, Hell Or High Water has an undercurrent of dread as it progresses and gradually builds up its characters. Aided by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’s eerie score, the anticipation of what’s clearly going to unfold gives the film a good amount of tension. And once it takes off its gloves, it delivers some serious blows to the audience’s emotions. Not only are the action scenes quite well done, they have more weight and impact than many of its contemporaries. They eventually build to a climax that’s rather thought provoking and logical.
Overall, Hell Or High Water’s mix of adrenaline, fun performances, thoughtful drama and mature sense of humor make it an easy recommendation from me. It’s a swaggering and macho film to be sure, but it’s nevertheless smart and surprisingly sweet enough to balance out its heavy testosterone, and more than happy to defy a number of stereotypes many people assume about the Lone Star state.