Film "Bone Tomahawk": reviews, actors and roles

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

There are films that are talked about before they hit the screens, but as a result, the audience is often disappointed - expectations do not justify the final result. And there are pictures that no one knows about until the date of their release, but they suddenly turn out to be a real breath of fresh air. Such a film is the western horror "Bone Tomahawk", reviews of critics and viewers about which are very impressive.

Director of the picture

Creator S. Craig Zahler, who acted immediately as a screenwriter and director of the tape, is a dark horse in the world of cinema. On his account, participation in only six projects, most of which are short films. Zaler's most significant work was his participation as a screenwriter in the thriller The Incident. The film Bone Tomahawk was his directorial debut. The film received rave reviews from critics. But more on that later.

Zaler is an interesting and versatile personality. He is a screenwriter, writer and musician. Four of his novels have been published. According to the last of them, the director of the film "Bonetomahawk”, reviews of which are almost all positive, is now writing the script for the new western “Rattleborge Robbers”. The plot is based on the story of two cowboys who came to an Indian settlement. They offer help in returning the daughter of the leader of the tribe, kidnapped by bandits, and in return they ask the Indian shamans to call a strong storm in a certain place with the help of the “rain dance”. Zaler is a real master of the pen, scrupulously writing portraits of his heroes. As a result, readers begin to perceive book characters as their acquaintances. This technique also works in the movie "Bone tomahawk" ("Bone Tomahawk" in Russian).

The choice of genre is a big part of the film's success

Westerns were extremely popular in the middle of the last century, but then gave way to such genres as thriller, horror and gangster films. For his debut work, Zaler chose a half-forgotten old western, and he did not let us down. The film "Bone Tomahawk", reviews of which can be read further, is still different from classic westerns - the director was not afraid to add a fair portion of very bloody realistic scenes to it. The result is a devilish western cocktail with horror elements.

Brilliant cast

We will tell about each performer and his role in the film "Bone Tomahawk" in 2015 separately, but it is worth noting the fact that the young director, little known before, was able to assemble a great cast: Kurt Russell, Matthew Fox, Richard Jenkins and Patrick Wilson are greatplayed together. Each of them got a textbook, but vivid image - a wise sheriff, a philosophizing elderly assistant, an aggressive bounty hunter and a lame cowboy, jealous of a beautiful wife for everyone who approaches her.

Working on the painting

Screenwriter S. Craig Zahler planned to try his hand as a director back in 2012. Then Timothy Olyphant was supposed to star in the film. A year later, consent was received to participate in the Kurt Russell project. Matthew Fox and Patrick Wilson joined the cast in 2104. Filming began the same year. They were supposed to take place in Utah and New Mexico, but in the end the film was shot in Malibu, in Paramount Ranch National Park. An interesting fact: the picture was completed in record time - in just three weeks.

The Plot of a Western Horror

The film is set in the late 19th century on the border between Texas and Mexico. Two bandits, Purvis and Buddy, kill travelers they meet on the prairie and loot their bodies and belongings. Hearing the noise, they hide in the gorge. In it they find frightening totems created from bones, including human ones. They soon wander into an Indian cemetery and are attacked. Buddy is killed and Purvis manages to escape.

After a while, he appears in the small town of Bright Hope, where Sheriff Franklin Hunt and his two deputies are keeping order. One of them, an elderly Chicory, tells the sheriff about a suspicious stranger, and Hunt arrests Purvis, aftershooting him in the leg while trying to escape.

A prisoner is assisted by a local doctor's assistant, Samantha O'Dwire. She stays at the sheriff's office overnight, worrying about Purvis' condition. The bandit is guarded by Hunt's second assistant - Nick.

Indians attack the town at night. A groom is killed and Nick, Samantha and Purvis are kidnapped. From a local Indian, residents learn about a tribe of cannibal Indians, whom the rest are afraid of and avoid meeting with them. Khan gathers people to save the kidnapped, but only four people agree to go on a rescue expedition. They will have several days of hard travel and a meeting with a dangerous and cruel enemy.

Interesting are the motives of the four people who went on a suicide rescue mission. Sheriff Hunt, face impenetrable as a century-old oak, leads the squad because he simply has to do it. He is the sheriff and no one can do his job. Buddy's elderly assistant is ready to follow the boss to the ends of the earth, and Hunt can't do anything about it, although he understands that the old man is a burden. John Bruder goes with everyone to take revenge on the Indians for his broken life, and cowboy Arthur O'Dwire is ready to do anything to save his beloved wife. Each of the four has weaknesses, but at the most crucial moment they are all capable of displaying great willpower.

Critic reaction

The Bone Tomahawk, a western horror film with unanimously positive reviews from critics and audiences, was made on a remarkably modest budget by blockbuster standardsrecent years - about 2 million dollars. The tape was released in a limited release, which did not prevent it from becoming a bright premiere and earning high praise from film critics. The painting has won several awards.

Western horror "Bone Tomahawk": actors and roles

Kurt Russell as Sheriff Franklin Hunt

During his long career, the actor appeared before the audience in different images. Most of all, he is remembered for his roles in numerous fantasy action films of the 1980-1990s. The most famous works of Kurt Russell are the cyberpunk Escape from New York, the horror The Thing, the thriller Proof of Life and the detective western The Hateful Eight. The best roles of the actor are associated with the films of Quentin Tarantino. The filmography of Russell's most interesting and successful paintings has now been replenished with the horror Bone Tomahawk. The actors who took part in it made up an excellent cast of talented performers.

Sheriff Franklin Hunt is a calm and taciturn man who has seen a lot and prefers to solve problems peacefully. But that doesn't mean he's incapable of action. If the situation calls for it, he is willing to risk his life without delay to save the people he is obligated to protect as sheriff of the city.

Matthew Fox as John Bruder

The actor gained wide popularity thanks to his participation in the series "Lost". His character John Bruder is a dude and a racist who takes revenge on the Indians for the death of his relatives. At the same time, he is a gentleman and without hesitation volunteers to help the sheriff in search of the kidnapped Samantha. O'Dwyer.

Richard Jenkins - Deputy Chicory

The actor mainly plays supporting roles and the most famous picture with his participation is the film "The Visitor". For his role in it, Jenkins was nominated for an Oscar. In The Bone Tomahawk, his character is a widower devoted to the sheriff who loves to philosophize.

Patrick Wilson as Arthur O'Dwyer

The most famous films with the participation of the actor are the horror "Astral" and the fantastic action movie "Watchmen".

Wilson's Arthur O'Dwyer cowboy is deceptively gentle. When the cowboy's companions are forced to go forward because of his broken leg, showing him the way with stones, he does not give up, but shows great will, stubbornly pursuing the rest to save his wife.

Interesting facts about the painting

Kurt Russell read one of Zahler's books and described him as a very talented writer. This phrase of the actor was placed on the back cover of all subsequent books by the director and screenwriter of Bone Tomahawk.

For actor David Arquette, this is the second cannibal western he has starred in. The first was the painting "Cannibal".

Zahler wrote the script for the film in 2007, and the final version of the western was based on the first draft of the manuscript.

Conclusion

The 2015 Bone Tomahawk is a scary, strange, and beautiful western with elements of horror about the confrontation between cowboys and cannibal Indians. A strong and powerful picture with a strong script and well-played actors -a rarity in the cinema of recent years. It is undoubtedly worth watching, but on one condition: if the audience has strong nerves and stomachs, since many scenes of violence are filmed extremely realistically.