Killers of the Flower Moon, review: One of Martin Scorsese’s Best Films Yet is a Haunting Reckoning
Killers of the Flower Moon is a Martin Scorsese picture nearly unlike any other Scorsese picture, and that is considerable given the auteur’s long, illustrious filmography. Not only has he graced us with a towering achievement worthy of the greater echelons of his most trademarked classics, but it is one of the best films of 2023 and the decade thus far.
The release and viewing experience for Killers of the Flower Moon must not be tread lightly as it gives a harrowing representation of one of America’s most grave injustices against the Osage Nation, also known as the Reign of Terror, which occurred from 1918 through 1931. The film’s source material is the 2017 nonfiction book of the same name by David Grann, which documents how members of the Osage Nation were once the wealthiest people in the world per capita before a conspiracy of government officials, members of the legal system, doctors, and civilians enacted and enabled the murders of over sixty or hundreds of wealthy Osage members.
Grann stated in 2017 about the novel and the Reign of Terror against the Osage Nation: “When I began researching this story, I thought of it as a traditional mystery […], whodunit. And in the end, I realized this wasn’t a whodunit; this was ‘Who didn’t do it?’ [The white members of the town were] complicit.” The film has rightfully revitalized this historical atrocity in the public conscience as America has reckoned with its history of white supremacy. (Explicit references are also made to the Tulsa Race Massacre 1921.)
The film has rightfully revitalized this historical atrocity in the public conscience as America has reckoned with its history of white supremacy. (There are also explicit references to the Tulsa Race Massacre 1921.) Much like the most significant films that reckon with history’s injustices — BlacKkKlansman (2018) came most to mind during my viewing —, I imagine that people within film culture and those most affected by the tragedies of the events depicted onscreen will be discussing this for years to come.
Unlike many of Scorsese’s prior films that view crime and systemic corruption through the lens of its perpetrators, Killers of the Flower Moon accounts for the countless people who committed atrocities, those who were complicit, and their victims. All of this allows for necessary progress compared to how historical injustices and marginalized communities have been represented by filmmakers.
The film’s press coverage has voiced Scorsese’s respect for the Osage Nation and how much he and the other filmmakers, including co-writer Eric Roth, consulted with Nation members to express their people and culture. Amidst the atrocities depicted against them, they are still fully realized people with personalities, families, and traditions up until the film’s concluding scenes.
Scorsese’s craftsmanship is unrelentingly engaging and immersive, allowing the audience to embrace the film’s colossal runtime. Rodrigo Prieto’s encompassing cinematography of the film’s western environment — with some scenes reminiscent of Terrence Malick’s seminal picture Days of Heaven (1978) — and more enclosed, intimate scenes set a new standard for both the director and Prieto’s filmography. Robbie Robertson’s score must also not be overlooked, juxtaposing 1920s style with ominous blues arrangements.
The cinematic reunion of Scorsese’s two most acclaimed muses, Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro — after This Boy’s Life (1993) and Marvin’s Room (1996) — was a long time coming, and their performances, both individual and in shared scenes, are incendiary. (They also share an unexpected, darkly comedic scene involving a paddle.) If any shortcoming can be found in DiCaprio’s performance as Ernest Burkhart, he slips somewhere between harrowing bouts of hamminess. His tendency to overact sometimes can be distracting, but in all other terms, this brilliant performance couldn’t have been delivered better in his filmography.
De Niro gives a career-best performance as William Hale, one of the few convicted of plotting murders during the Reign of Terror. Even with the public’s familiarity with De Niro, he manages to convincingly erase all traces of his classic schtick in favor of creating one of the most eerie cinematic villains in recent memory. His switches between a grandfatherly businessman, complete with an Oklahoma accent, and a ruthless crime lord are entertainingly perturbing.
Any fruits for this film’s labor would only be complete with discussing breakout star Lily Gladstone as Mollie Burkhart, the wife of Ernest Burkhart. She was among many people most affected by the Reign of Terror. Gladstone encompasses numerous emotions as an iron-willed person who maintains her dignity and connections with her family and culture even as her world is destroyed. If Gladstone becomes the first Native American actress to win Best Actress come Oscar season, it would be a deserving victory for her, this film, progress within the Academy Awards, and Indigenous representation in cinema.
Killers of the Flower Moon is currently a top contender for numerous awards, including the Oscars. Still, it also deserves to be represented at the box office, given the comebacks prestige films have been making. When Scorsese, Paramount Pictures, and Apple Original Films decide to forego direct-to-streaming a three-and-a-half-hour epic in favor of theaters and IMAX, they mean business, especially when it’s not a standard-bearer blockbuster. But it’s more than just entertainment; it’s cinema at its most rewarding potential.
The film’s ending, including an ingenious and period-accurate storytelling device, reminds us of why its Indigenous characters matter most and how Scorsese continues to enthrall us 56 years after his theatrical debut in 1967 with Who’s That Knocking At My Door.
