Killers Of The Flower Moon Early Buzz: Martin Scorsese's Latest Brings Powerful Performances And A Hard-Hitting Ending
For critics attending the 76th Cannes Film Festival this week, Martin Scorsese's adaptation of David Grann's book "Killers of the Flower Moon" was among the hottest tickets in town. The latest film from the acclaimed director has been garnering headlines months ahead of its release, as the 206-minute epic is set to tell the real-life story of a series of murders on Osage Native American land in the 1920s.
Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert de Niro, and the ever-underrated "Certain Women" star Lily Gladstone all share the screen in a story about the greed and violence that erupt among white men when the Osage people strike oil in Oklahoma. Scorsese has revealed that his real-life meetings with Indigenous descendants of those murdered changed the way he wanted to frame the story, and he's also spoken about how the story reckons with genocide in the midst of a love story. In all, "Killers of the Flower Moon" sounds like a movie that could challenge and move audiences in equal measure, just as the true story at its core seemed to challenge and move its filmmaker.
Audiences at Cannes have finally seen "Killers of The Flower Moon," and as responses roll in on social media and in swiftly-written reviews, it sounds like it's due to be another fantastic entry into Scorsese's considerable canon. Kyle Buchanan of the New York Times wrote on Twitter that "Everything about 'Killers of the Flower Moon' is big: The story, the scale, the run time, the staggering amount of extras, and the terrifically assured performance from Lily Gladstone opposite DiCaprio and De Niro."
A lengthy epic full of noteworthy performances
Buchanan is far from the only critic to single out great performances in the film. Slate's Sam Adams tweeted that "De Niro [sic] hasn't been this great in years," while /Film's own Lex Briscuso commends Gladstone's performance in particular. "'Killers of the Flower Moon' is a magnificent epic that lays bare the pervasive insidiousness of white men," Briscuso wrote on Twitter, noting that it's "fully engaging, earns its runtime, and sets Lily Gladstone up for sheer stardom." According to the writer, "it's simply unreal how much strength and sorrow she can convey with just a stare."
De Niro and Gladstone seem to be getting the majority of the praise, but IndieWire's David Ehrlich also singled out DiCaprio in his review, writing that the actor gives a career-best performance in the film. The Hollywood Reporter's David Rooney, meanwhile, wrote that "all three leads are excellent, but it's especially worth noting the complexity of what DiCaprio pulls off" in playing real historical figure Ernest Burkhart.
Early buzz for "Killers of the Flower Moon" largely seems positive, but not every review and reaction is overtly glowing. Adams' initial Twitter reaction noted that the film "takes a while to find its shape" for him, but the last hour "is a rocket." The Playlist's Robert Daniels said the film has some blind spots and could use more Gladstone, writing in his review that "when she isn't on the screen, this 206-minute movie, which moves at an invigorating pace through its first half, begins to tire and slow." Variety's Peter Debruge also seems to think the movie didn't quite earn its hefty runtime, writing in his review that "the murders perversely become a thing to look forward to, carrying viewers through long dry stretches of drama." Yikes!
The film's ending packs a punch
Potential shortcomings aside, "Killers of the Flower Moon" sounds like a film that leaves audiences with a strong impression as the credits roll. Several tweets allude to or reference some sort of narrative coda, which is apparently quite powerful. Vox's Alissa Wilkinson tweeted that the film "has a self-reflexive moral theme woven throughout that suddenly pops off the screen at the end, because this is late Scorsese, and it's brilliant." Slate's Adams called the coda "an utter masterstroke," and Film School Rejects' Farah Cheded tweeted that "there's a Spike Lee-ish moment of self-reflexivity at the end of 'Killers of the Flower Moon'" that nearly moved her to tears.
Reviews are still rolling in, but responses to Scorsese's latest seem positive, highlighting its apparently excellent performances, the impressive scope of its story and themes, and what sounds like an indelible ending. Even director Edgar Wright chimed in with an early review via Twitter, saying that the movie is "a profoundly powerful & disturbing film on an open wound subject," and noting that it might be Scorsese's best 21st-century film.
"Killers of the Flower Moon" will hit theaters on October 6, 2023, which after this early buzz, feels like it's a whole world away.