'The Harder They Fall' Review: Mediocre watch with cool horseback entrances and guns
Spoilers for 'The Harder They Fall'
Netflix just dropped its latest western action flick that revolves around the age-old tale of revenge. 'The Harder They Fall' although a fictional film, has its characters based on real cowboys, lawmen, and outlaws of the 19th-century American West.
The movie has a talented cast comprising of Idris Elba, Regina King, and Jonathan Majors to name a few as we see them don their cowboy hats, ride horses and carry out robberies. With a high production value and the trailer full of energy, the flick set high expectations. Read on to know our thoughts on 'The Harder They Fall'.
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'The Harder They Fall' tells a tale of payback as outlaw Nat Love (Jonathan Majors) rides with his group to exact revenge on the criminal Rufus Buck (Idris Elba), who killed Nat's parents and left him with a scar on his forehead many years ago. The western flick starts off well enough as we see the Crimson Hood Gang after a successful bank robbery gets ambushed by Nat Love's gang and have the cash stolen from them. As Rufus Buck is freed, we also meet Treacherous Trudy (Regina King) and Cherokee Bill (Lakeith Stanfield) as Buck's right and left hands. Riding with Nat Love are Stagecoach Mary (Zazie Beetz), Jim Beckwourth (RJ Cyler), Bill Pickett (Edi Gathegi), and Cuffee (Danielle Deadwyler ) as they face off against Buck.
'The Harder They Fall' packs in some fun action sequences and with the appropriate jiggy music insert shots are enjoyable as well. Idris Elba gives off a formidable and subtle but menacing vibe with him fitting the role of a criminal well. He also has really good chemistry with Regina King with scenes having both of them made more interesting. Jonathan Majors gives a good performance as well as the man who was traumatized as a child and who is haunted by the memory of his parents' murder. If you're going in with the expectation of having a lot of Idris Elba on screen then you will be disappointed. Even though he's a lead character, the movie wastes time on horseriding shots and showcasing just how western this world is. Don't get us wrong but the horseback gang entrances are incredibly cool as they trot in with panache, but that's about it. The main characters may be cool and powerful but we like the side characters of Cherokee Bill and Jim Beckwourth with their dangerously voiced murderous intentions, and humor respectively.
Even though it has a stellar cast and high production value, the story is where the movie lacks. It's the same old cassette played once more with an oh-so-shocking twist at the end that doesn't really do anything. Waste of a really great cast we say. The western flick plays heavily on cowboy tropes and if you're a lover of that genre then you'll probably like the movie purely for that aspect. Our suggestion - this is a movie that can be skipped or mindlessly watched for its colorful scenes, high energy, horses, and gunfights. Skip it or stream it, either way, you've not got much to lose (except maybe your precious time).
'The Harder They Fall' is now streaming on Netflix.
