Killers of the Flower Moon: Martin Scorsece's true crime tale of ethnic cleansing. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

By Rob Ryan

In 1918 Oklahoma, members of the Osage tribe became incredibly wealthy after gallons upon gallons of oil spewed from their land, Despite the laws in place at the time only allowing white folk to handle their finances, they were living fabulously, but that wouldn't last long as their new-found wealth would soon come with deadly consequences. Enter Ernest Burkhart (Leonardo DiCaprio) a WW1 Veteran who comes to live with his uncle and guardian, William "King" Hale (a charming but slimy Robert De Niro) a benefactor to the Osage people who provides them with infrastructure in which they can use their money for. While Bill Hale has the best intentions on the surface, it doesn't take long to learn of his true intentions.

This is when we are introduced to Mollie Kyle ( Lilly Gladstone) an Osage member whose family are the primary beneficiaries of the oil and money. At first, Ernest works as a driver for her and the two seem to get along well. He soon learns of the Osage way of life and even learns to speak their language. All seems well and Bill gives his blessing of marriage. But little does Mollie know that the relationship, marriage and their love are all a front for Bill's scheme. As time passes, members of Mollie's family die in brutal and cruel ways. It starts out as poison that can pass for an illness the family have been suffering from, Including her mother (Tantoo Cardinal). Other's include Mollie's other sister Anna (Cara Jade Meyers) being shot in the back of the head. All Mollie can do is sit and watch as one by one her family's lives are snuffed out of existence while Ernest and Bill get closer and closer to inheriting their oil money.

The police do nothing, private detectives are either beaten or chased away by local gangs, and the government doesn't seem to care, that is until the emergence of the FBI which will soon provide a snag in their scheme.

Killers of the Flower Moon is no easy viewing, not only due to its runtime of 3 hours and 26 minutes but also because of the graphic nature of the story. How generations upon generations of Osage members are systematically wiped out. How brazen the crimes of these people were. How powerless these people were under the weight of powerful rich white folk who despite not being the inheritors of their land might as well owned their way of life, including when it was time to die. Bill Hale owned the doctors to provide the white husbands of Osage women their prescription (and poison) and his contribution to providing infrastructure to the town made him more and more untouchable, This seemingly goes to show that the old west did not die in 1899, it ended when the FBI was founded.

The movie is an old-school epic, a prodigious production, something that Scorsese doesn't have a lack experience of. It involves elements of a Western, historical epic and a true crime thriller, all culminating in a trial where all the pieces of the puzzle are slowly put together. The film's incredibly expensive budget of $200 million has definitely not gone to waste (though these days it's hard to tell how inflated budgets are) the attention to detail is immaculate capturing a place of time that is no longer reachable. The film is carefully plotted. Nothing is hamfisted and overexplained, the way information is displayed makes you curious for more and when the film reaches its conclusion, you will be glad you did.

People have already commented on the long run time with some feeling that it's a story that could've been told in a lot less time. Personally, while it's a lot to take in all one go, the length of the film was necessary for closely capturing the passage of time. Remember this was a crime that went unnoticed for years, Ernest and Mollie have three kids over this period of time. The length I feel captures the weight of years gone by, as lives were lost and the white folk can earn their millions. To me the purpose of a long runtime is to make the film more lived-in, as opposed to getting snapshots of a tragedy, you are given glimpses into the lives of these people before their lives are stolen away from them, Including Mollie's family who even they seem to be aware of what's going on but are defenceless to say anything about it.

I haven't even started talking about the all-star cast and how everyone's performance is on point. DiCaprio perfectly captures Ernest as a brooding man who is not very bright and seems to always be on the defensive, acting all tough all the time while his wife just looks on as even she knows how pathetic he is. Robert DeNiro reliably captures a wholesome father figure who is everybody's friend while also displaying a hidden gangster quality that he is well known for. There is also Jessie Plemons as FBI agent Tom White who's one-to-one with Ernest is a scene highlight (among many) as his calm demeanour when first visiting Ernest "to ask about the murders" visibly puts him on edge. John Lithgow shows up as a prosecutor for the case and a surprise visit from Brendan Fraser as Hale's attorney whose first appearance is another scene highlight as he deliberately obstructs the trial in an obvious ploy.

But the stand out has to be from the indigenous cast, most notably Lilly Gladstone whose face speaks so much pain and anguish than any piece of dialogue could allow. It becomes more and more painful watching this woman's family slowly be taken from her and the emotion she displays after each new death is nothing short of harrowing. It's a tragic character that probably couldn't be played by anyone else. While DiCaprio is appropriately expressive in his character she is reserved, and subtle but with so much weight and suppressed emotion behind her eyes.

Killers of the Flower Moon is masterful in its portrayal of a period of time, the moral code prevalent in this place, how gangsters owned small towns, and how the government did nothing. All while people knew their days were numbered, it was just a matter of when, the film is also a masterpiece in atmosphere and tone, perfectly displayed by long-time Scorcese collaborators, the cinematography by Rodrigo Prieto is grand in scope, the production design by Jack Fisk, the editing by Thelma Schoonmaker and the catchy but evocative music by Robbie Robertson (RIP) all come together to create an experience that is cold cruel and unrelenting but ultimately nostalgic.

When the film ended it felt like I had been holding my breath for so long, and all I could do was breathe and reflect on what I had seen. A feeling that only can be captured from watching a really good movie, a very long one but a very good one.

Killers of the Flower Moon is out in UK cinemas