“Killers of the Flower Moon,” a crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese, represents both cinematic and storytelling excellence. Based on the book of the same name, written by David Grann, the film carries fantastic performances from every actor and actress with standout performances from Robert De Niro, Leonardo Dicaprio, and Lily Gladstone.
With a monster run-time of three hours and 26 minutes, Scorsese directs a masterful, historically accurate film about the mysterious murders of members of the Osage Native American people in 1920s Oklahoma. These murders were motivated by extreme envious greed over the oil rights owned by the Osage people, the indigenous tribe native to the Midwest, including the area in Oklahoma in which this story is told. The oil rights the Osage owned gave them a lot of wealth within their respective families.
One of the main characters, Ernest Burkhard (Leonardo Dicaprio) is shown to have a greedy nature and shady disposition. He comes to Oklahoma to live with his wealthy uncle, William “King” Hale (Robert De Niro) after his time in the military. Hale lives on a cattle ranch and is an ally to the Osage people. Ernest soon falls in love with a full-blooded Osage woman named Mollie Kyle (Lily Gladstone).
The film goes through the multi-year sequence of events surrounding these murders, mostly through the eyes of Ernest and Mollie. Ernest has to find the balance between the love for his wife, his unhealthy greediness for riches, and the deceitful influence of his uncle while Mollie tries her hardest to uncover the truth of the murders and live a peaceful life free from deception.
To me, Scorsese does an excellent job covering a very intricate true story. The excellent camera work and editing choices also make the film very visually appealing. The sequencing of the film is also excellent. The film is based on real-life events that are presented in chronological order. Scorsese is very good at giving enough context in every scene that helps the audience understand what is fully happening in these real-life events.
The phenomenal acting makes the movie so enjoyable. Watching the experienced actors root into their characters made it easy for me to admire their dedication. De Niro, DiCaprio, and Gladstone all read the source material in order to more deeply understand the story and learn more about the real-life people they would portray.
The book, released in 2017, was written from the point of view of the FBI agent that solved the case, Tom White. However, Scorsese shifts the movie’s focus to the Osage people and the complex love story of Mollie and Ernest which, I believe, made for a much more engaging storyline.
“I’d read the book a few years earlier and the Tom White character was more prominent,” De Niro said in an interview with Deadline. “That was right for the book, but [Scorsese] and [DiCaprio’s] idea to focus on the relationship between Bill and Ernest made sense to me. They wanted to focus more on that dynamic instead of Tom White coming in and saving the day.”
The setting only adds to the film’s exceptional story telling. The time period of 1920s Oklahoma allows for the wardrobe and set design team to show their skill in capturing such an interesting time period.
My only criticism of the film is its prolonged length. Although the movie tells a very complex story, it does not call for the near three-and-a-half hour runtime. It not only makes it a lot to digest on first watch, but also makes the movie challenging to rewatch.
Even with its lengthy runtime, the acting, writing, cinematography, dialogue, editing, and themes of “Killers of the Flower Moon” make this film a cinematic gem that will, no doubt, receive widespread praise from audiences and critics alike.
