I finally saw Killers of the Flower Moon. It's an amazing (true!) story, and maybe one of the few modern films that actually portrays the F.B.I. in a positive light.
That said, DiCaprio sleepwalks through this performance. I actually had to remind myself that his character was intensely evil, but he comes off as a dumb lump of rocks who had no agency beyond his desires for sex and money.
That's also true though. Evil can be stupid, not just devious. Tons of Americans throughout history have both lied and murdered their way through life as racist assholes, but at the same time seen themselves as "innocent" (more Manifest Destiny than White Man's Burden, but still).
De Niro gets it, and acted appropriately. He's doing evil against these people, but actively sees himself as doing the right, justified thing. I think that's what a film about this material has to address head on.
Also, it's too long. Multiple reviews argued that since it's Scorsese it's worth the three and a half hours.
Nope. This is good Scorsese, not great Scorsese. It's too damn long and the necessary cuts present themselves throughout the film.
Good, but could have been a lot better.
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