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MESSAGE IN THE MOVIES

When the movie begins, there is a drumbeat, chanting, and a sacred ceremony. A peace pipe is wrapped in a shroud and buried in the ground. White civilization is coming and life will never be the same. We then learn a few basic facts. The Osage Nation, settled in Oklahoma, manage to own mineral rights to the region. When oil is discovered in 1897, all of the approximately 2,000 tribe members begin to receive royalties from the leasing of the land to oil companies. Government officials still consider the Osage “incompetent” and require them to use official guardians whenever they wish to access money from their bank accounts. Prosperity is abundant and the Osage become the most affluent tribe in the nation.

Then the murders begin.

David Grann’s 2017 nonfiction best seller was a masterful depiction of the Osage Murders as well as the FBI’s investigation of the crimes. Martin Scorsese and Eric Roth took Grann’s material and created an epic that is large in scale but also intimate when necessary to tell the story of how one person is initially deceived, then corrupted, and finally complicit in committing evil activities, including murder.

Ernest Burkhart (DiCaprio) comes home to Oklahoma in 1919 after serving in World War I to live with his uncle William (“Call me King”) Hale (De Niro). Hale owns a cattle ranch and is a community leader and deputy sheriff who considers himself to be a friend of the Osage. As Ernest begins his life in town as a taxi driver, his uncle draws his attention to Mollie Kyle (Lily Gladstone), a quiet but confident Osage woman whose family has benefited from oil rights. A tender romance begins and eventually leads to marriage and Ernest’s growing involvement in working with his brother Byron (Scott Shepherd) for William Hale.

There’s not much suspense in observing the progress of Burkhart’s moral lapses since he is depicted as a naïve and somewhat slow-witted fellow (especially compared to Mollie’s inquiring mind), but there is genuine shock in how expansive and dark the corruption is revealed to be.

This may be Martin Scorsese’s most morally earnest film. I have always considered his movies to have significant ethical and theological heft but it’s clear that he wants the audience for Flowers of the Killer Moon to understand our own complicity in the subjugation and exploitation of Indian territories. And since this obvious sin is still a “hot button” issue, I appreciate his passion. But when there is an obvious message to be made, the result is a script bereft of memorable dialogue and standout sequences.

It’s noteworthy to mention that Lily Gladstone makes this serviceable screenplay sing. I predict that her performance as Mollie will win most of the major awards and she will deserve every one of them. It’s through her character that we experience the beauty and the pain of a subjugated culture.

The movie ends with a drumbeat of hope and the vision of a circle of celebration. As those who believe in a resurrection faith, there is always time to begin again.

Halo and Pitchfork Rating:

Four halos: American History presented as an indictment and a cautionary tale.
Four pitchforks: Extreme violence, including murders; occasional strong profanity; racist slurs; exploitation; deceit; alcohol and drug use.

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