The Old Man & the Gun is the cinematic equivalent of a warm blanket on a cold day. The security, the feeling, the good vibes and history are all linked, except here the security is based on the talent of director David Lowery, the feelings you feel are because of the brilliant acting, and the good vibes and history encompass what is a fitting send off to a Hollywood legend. This film, about a man named Forrest Tucker, bank robber extraordinaire, and the people in his life is just a wonderful picture.
David Lowery is such a gifted filmmaker and The Old Man & the Gun really showcases why. As the writer/director of this picture, he has crafted a movie that’s thoroughly entertaining with surprising moments of pathos and human empathy. I was dazzled, not only by his camera work and staging of the pre/during/after robbery scenes, but by his ability to keep me invested in the human connection. We all have something we love to do and do well; Forrest just happens to be good at robbing banks. Throughout the film, I kept having to adjust my morality, I rooted for Forrest and had to wrestle with the fact that he was indeed a criminal. Lowery doesn’t position him to be vilified but just presents you with a unique and fascinating slice of a man’s life.
It’s easy to do this when you have a cast that’s firing on all cylinders, radiating pure human goodness. Even those who have small but crucial roles like Tika Sumpter (so glad to see her), Danny Glover, Tom Waits, and Gene Jones just come on screen and fill voids you didn’t even know needed to be filled. The standouts amongst the supporting cast are of course the two main forces in Forrest’s life, played by Sissy Spacek and Casey Affleck. Sissy is one of my all time favorite actresses and watching her fall in love with Redford (their first time working together!) was delightful. I appreciated how she showed us why a woman like that would fall in love with a man like Forrest and her reservations about his line of work. There’s a brilliant scene where you can see just for a moment how thrilled she is attempting to be like Forrest before pulling back to her own center.
While many of the others get to play happier notes from jump, Casey Affleck’s character John Hunt starts in a more depressed place. On the precipice of turning 40, he’s bored with his job, but buoyed by his loving family. Watching Affleck play this and slowly slide into being energized about catching a bank robber was amazing. His performance is so firm that you don’t realize that he hasn’t smiled much until a moment where he does and it’s like the sun is shinning. His work in scenes with Redford is top tier acting.
For me, it is incredibly sad to know this is Robert Redford’s last movie, but it’s hard not to feel heartened that even in his swan song, he’s giving it his all. Redford understands that his movie star charisma has not dimmed in the many years he’s been a star and uses it to full advantage. His character is a man everyone is charmed by in various capacities, and Redford certainly gives us plenty of reasons why. But more than that, he’s soulful and gives an outlandish character on the surface incredible depth. His character is driven by his convictions and loves (robbing banks) and the regret that it has caused over the years begins wearing on him. There’s so many scenes that rely on a glance or slight change in demeanor, and Redford nails them all brilliantly. What an end to a great career and what a fun film to do it in.