Let Him Go

Mr. and Mrs. Adnerb continue to haunt the local theatres in hopes of seeing a great movie. Except for “Tenent,” expectations have fallen short. “Let Him Go” is another mediocre movie being released by the studios hoping to entice the crowds back. It is not working. The more into the pandemic we get, the more we don’t need a depressing downer of a movie. Kevin Costner and Diane Lane play George and Margaret Blackledge (I love both actors by the way) who have overcome several tragedies in their life, including the death of their adult son in a freak accident. Mrs. Blackledge finds solace in her grandson. Eventually their son’s widow remarries and moves away; but not before Margaret witnesses the new husband physically abusing both mother and child. Fearing for the safety of their grandson, the Blackledges decide to see if they can rescue the boy. The clan that won’t give him up are some of the most stereotypical villians I have seen in a serious drama. There is a side plot featuring a Native American young man that was interesting, but perplexing. It didn’t add or detract from the story, it was more like filler. The acting is topnotch and the cinematography is breathtaking. The first half of the story is super slow and takes a long time to set up the action of the second half. So, I wasn’t expecting the brutal violence and heavy handed cruelty of the matriarchal clan, (John Boorman pulled off hill people violence with far more style and impact in ‘Deliverance.’ This time around, it’s just violence for visceral effect), and leads to an almost predictable and extremely unsatisfying ending. We counted about 15 people in the theatre. If studios want to find a market for their movies, I suggest releasing a few of the bigger budget movies like “No Time to Die” or “Wonder Woman 1984.” Until that happens (likely not ’til the really big markets like LA or New York open back up), even a mediocre movie is better than nothing.