Since the amounts of cash stolen are in the thousands rather than the millions, the FBI aren't interested and the case is handed instead by aged and grumpy Texas Ranger Marcus Hamilton (Jeff Bridges, "True Grit") and his partner Alberto (Gil Birmingham). But the meticulous planning of Toby, as the calm and intelligent one, are constantly at risk of upset by the unpredictable and violent actions of the loose-cannon Tanner. Rather than taking one of the "get out of debt" offers advertised on billboards – cleverly and insistently introduced in long panning highway shots – the brothers have their own financial plan: a scheme that involves early morning raids of the cash drawers of small-town Texas Midlands branches. Chris Pine ("Star Trek") and Ben Foster ("Inferno", "The Program") play brothers Toby and Tanner Howard trying to rescue their deceased mother's ranch from being foreclosed on by Texas Midlands bank. Add in to the movie Nutribullet a soupçon of the West Texan setting from Arthur Penn's 1967 "Bonnie and Clyde", turn it on and you have "Hell or High Water". Where this film delivers interest is in aligning the protagonists' drivers with the banking and mortgage 'crimes' featured in last year's "The Big Short". A definite must-watch.īank robberies have been featured in many hundreds of films since the early days of cinema: The Great Train Robbery for example dates back to 1903! More recent heist classics such as "Oceans 11", "Die Hard", "Run Lola Run" and "The Dark Knight Rises" tend towards the stylised end of the act. Given the plot, the remote setting and the almost nostalgic atmosphere and ambiance of the film, it is honestly a miracle, and more than a pleasant surprise, just how very gratifying and outstanding this film actually is. In short, it is a typical story of cops and robbers (or so you would think), with an atypical, uncommon and unconventional narrative. What ensues is a catch-me-if-you-can scenario with the pursuing "law" hell-bent on catching them, and them hell-bent on not being caught. Without giving too much away, and having to use a spoiler tag, Hell or High Water is a story about two brothers who after the death of their mother, organize a series of (justified?) bank robberies. I finally sat down and watched it with friends who insisted it was not what it appeared to be within the first few minutes of the film. I thought it was another dumb movie about inept country-bumpkins, which would rely on a mixture of slapstick and overly-done sappy and violent scenes in order to create enough of a pull to keep at least some audience members somewhat entertained. The first time I watched this, I turned it off at about the 5-minute mark.
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