The early reactions to Killers of the Flower Moon are in. The film, which is set to premiere in limited theaters on October 6 with a wide expansion on October 20, is the latest film from celebrated director Martin Scorsese. The epic Western, which is based on a real-life spate of killings in 1920s Oklahoma involving oil being discovered on tribal land, stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Jesse Plemons, Lily Gladstone, Brendan Fraser, John Lithgow, and Robert De Niro, who has been collaborating with the director since 1973’s Mean Streets.
Today, critics and media personalities have been allowed to share their spoiler-free early reactions ahead of the official Killers of the Flower Moon release date. The film is receiving rapturous praise online in the wake of its Cannes premiere, which took place earlier today. They are calling the new film “a magnificent epic” and even placing it “among top tier Martin Scorsese.” Check out select early reactions as well as excerpts from full written reviews below:
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Peter Debruge, Variety:
So how does Scorsese justify the running time? Shooting the film on location in Oklahoma, he and DP Rodrigo Prieto immerse audiences in the oil-rich community, featuring street races and downtown parades, plus a stunning scene in which King’s cattle can be seen burning in his fields. Picnics and powwows provide more than just production value, situating this incredible story within a singular place and time.
David Ehrlich, IndieWire:
That sepia-toned saga of slow-poisoned self-denial is sustained by the best performance of Leonardo DiCaprio’s entire career. The former matinee idol has never been shy about playing low-lifes and scum-bums, but his nuanced and uncompromising turn as the cretinous Ernest Burkhart mines new wonders from the actor’s long-standing lack of vanity.
Pete Hammond, Deadline:
There are many ways to spoil the sheer pleasure of watching a master filmmaker handle a vast tale like this, working at the top of a very impressive game at a time when many have retired. I won’t do that except to say with a length of 3 1/2 hours the filmmaker and his longtime editor, Thelma Schoonmaker, don’t seem to be wasting any time. Yes, it feels truly epic in many ways, but all in service to the story. I never looked at my watch.
Matt Neglia, Next Best Picture:
It is a reminder of why the master has not lost his touch and is still, at age 80, finding new ways to push the medium forward while keeping cinema alive.
David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter:
To some degree, this is a classic Scorsese crime narrative transposed to prairie territory in the script co-authored by the director and Eric Roth. And there are darkly amusing moments of anger in which De Niro’s colorful performance recalls his hall-of-fame wise guys. But the shift into historical Americana breathes a soulfulness into the material that feels distinct from most of the director’s output.
Killers of the Flower Moon Continues Scorsese’s Career-Long Hot Streak
These early reactions to Killers of the Flower Moon prove that Scorsese is continuing his recent hot streak. If this word of mouth maintains its energy through awards season, he could be seeing another streak of Oscar nominations like he did for his previous feature The Irishman. Killers of the Flower Moon‘s true story element and over three hour run time make it feel like a spiritual successor to that prior film as well, which could spell good things for this new outing.
While his two most recent films feel of a piece, they both come as a solid gold cap on a career of seemingly nonstop successes. Throughout his career, Scorsese has directed a whopping total of 42 feature films. Out of all those, only 2 (1972’s Boxcar Bertha and 1977’s New York, New York) have received a Rotten rating on the review aggregator service Rotten Tomatoes.
Despite perhaps feeling inevitable, these reactions are still nonetheless remarkable. Continuing a streak of well-liked films for nearly four and a half decades is no small feat. This early buzz plus the epic Killers of the Flower Moon trailer that dropped earlier this week should combine for a cinema event not to be missed.
Source: Various (see above)
This story originally appeared on Screenrant
