Out of the Furnace
OUT OF THE FURNACE (15)
D: Scott Cooper
Relativity Media/Appain Way/Scott Free/Red Granite (Jennifer
Davisson Killoran, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ryan Kavanaugh, Ridley Scott & Michael Costigan)
US 2013
116 mins
Crime/Drama
W: Scott Cooper & Brad Ingelsby
DP: Masanobu Takayanagi
Ed: David Rosenbloom
Mus: Dickon Hinchliffe
Christian Bale (Russell Baze), Casey Affleck (Rodney Baze,
Jr.), Woody Harrelson (Harlan DeGroat), Willem Dafoe (John Petty), Forest Whitaker (Wesley Barnes), Zoë Saldana (Lena Taylor), Sam Shepard (Gerald Baze)
Out Of The Furnace is a study of the loyalties and bond
between two brothers in a small Pennsylvania town.
Russell Baze, the elder, follows in his father's footsteps of
working at the town steel mill, while younger brother, Rodney Baze, an Iraq war veteran struggles to settle back into life, constantly finding himself in debt to a local small-time
gangster.
After an accident involving death by drink driving, Russell
serves time, released to the discovery that his ex-girlfriend is now in a relationship with the local sheriff and his brother is participating in bare-knuckle fights to earn his
keep.
Rodney soon disappears after getting involved in a group of
dangerous criminals in the Jersey hills, prompting Russell to take the law into his own hands.
A
slow-burning thriller, which utilises excellent performance from its ensemble cast, Out Of The Furnace does drag a little in places, and also strikes some comparisons with The Deer Hunter (qv).
Only the ending disappoints.
7/10
