The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
March 2008 Reviewed by: Mischa Hayek Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

Not a film to watch without a few cups of coffee in your stomach, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is a long, slow examination of the last months of Jesse James’ life prior to his death at the hands of Robert Ford, a member of his gang of outlaws. Based on the 1983 book of the same name by Ron Hansen, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford was originally over three hours in length and scheduled to be released in September 2006; however, director Andrew Dominik’s film was re-edited to 157 minutes and finally released a year later in September 2007, nearly two years after filming was completed.

Confounded initially by the film’s title (since I would decide whether Robert Ford was a coward or not), I found it useful to research the Jesse James story before viewing the film. What is not explained in Dominik’s film adaptation is that the James-Younger Gang, as they were originally called, began their string of robberies shortly after the Civil War concluded. The gang targeted railroads and banks that were coincidentally the property of former Union supporters. Thus, Jesse James, his older brother Frank, and the other members of the gang were hailed as heroes by the Confederate south, and Jesse was likened to Robin Hood despite killing many innocent people and never giving any money to the poor.

In Dominik’s story, Jesse James (Brad Pitt) becomes increasingly paranoid and irrational after his last train robbery. As members of his gang get captured, he begins to believe that he will be next so he sets off to confront the remaining gang members and look for signs of betrayal. Meeting up with Robert Ford (Casey Affleck) and his brother, Charlie (Sam Rockwell), James suspects the brothers are keeping information from him. Rather than kill them outright, he brings the brothers to live with him so he can keep an eye on them. Realizing that it is only a matter of time before James kills them, the brothers conspire with the authorities to bring Jesse to justice. But the tension of living with him and his increased paranoia causes the brothers to abandon their original idea of capturing him, and when James takes off his guns to do some work around the house, Robert Ford guns him down.

Casey Affleck gives a career-making performance as Robert Ford, the youth who idolized Jesse James and dreamed of being just like him. One can see in Affleck’s face how weak Ford is, how he needs Jesse James’ approval, and how hurt he is when James ridicules him. We see him fight to maintain control at every rebuff and we hear his voice breaking as he tries to respond with dignity to each harsh word said against him. Brad Pitt is also solid as Jesse James. He plays James without much compromise; we don’t know whether we should like James for his charm and occasional generosity or detest him for the ease with which he kills.

Dominik’s slow and languid pace gives both actors the time to convey emotions through body language and facial expressions; action is secondary as the means of telling the story. Thus, viewers looking for a shoot’em-up type western will be disappointed. There is a dearth of action and many viewers may get a little tired of the acting exercise.

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is also very much an exercise in style. Dominik enlisted the help of cinematographer Roger Deakins to create a moody atmosphere with an occasional soft focus to give Jesse James a mythical appearance. Filming took place almost entirely in and around the Canadian cities of Calgary, Edmonton, and Winnipeg.

It's hard to assess the DVD picture quality on a period piece like this one. It is obvious that the film's been shot with muted colors that give it a dark, sometimes depressing appearance -- it always looks like the worst days of fall and winter with no hint that spring or summer can ever come. However, once you realize that, you can also see the transfer of that muted palette is quite good with exquisite detail and good contrast, even in the dimly lit scenes.

However, the sound quality didn't impress me that much, mostly because it sounds somewhat "closed in." Gunshots, for example, don't ring out in the room, and when the bass swells, it sticks close to the speakers and sub and doesn't envelope the listener. Furthermore, I had to rely upon subtitles for comprehension in several places because of insufficient recording volume (in the source medium) and poor enunciation by some of the actors. The sound quality is adequate, but certainly not outstanding. 

This Warner Bros. release contains no bonus features whatsoever. (The Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD editions do include a 30-minute documentary, which corroborates the accuracy of the movie in some instances and refutes it in others. And that’s the only HD extra, one more than nothing.) Warner Bros. made no effort to make this DVD release worthy of collecting. I suspect a director’s cut will be released at some time in the future.

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