The Harder They Fall

Entering the fall season, it's another busy movie weekend, though I am thankful when some of these films are available via streaming to cut down on dollars/time spent in theater. 

The Harder They Fall is one such film - but funny enough, one I wish I'd gotten to check out in theaters - because of how much it took me by surprise, easily being one of my favorite films of 2021. 

The stylish, African American western may seem normal on the surface, but after just a few minutes, it's very clear that the film hums and sings to its own tune, creating an immensely memorable and entertaining movie in the process. Because of a busy week/weekend (the film came out on Wednesday), I had to watch it in a few separate chunks over the last few days and even despite that suboptimal viewing method, I was consistently excited to return and eventually see how it all wrapped up. 

Wondering if there would be a last minute downfall or poor ending, I was thrilled to watch the final 40 minutes of high-quality, bloody, revolver-shooting action, capped with an interesting story element that ties everything nicely with a bow.

In the case of The Harder They Fall, this will be a shorter review for the simple fact that it's a straight forward movie where I have very minimal criticisms. As are most films these days, it probably could use a trimming and I found that some of the transition moments within action sequences were a little janky - almost as if the film didn't know how best to move from one action beat to another - but otherwise, there's not much to fault this awesome film for. 

It's style and fun that it gets to have is what surprised me most, taking clear inspiration from Westerns of old, with a heavy dose of Tarantino, and some obvious similarities with Black Panther. All of that combines into one hell of an entertaining movie that oozes with style, but not so much so that it becomes obnoxious. In fact, I found the restraint to not have something "snazzy" in every scene admirable, making the moments the movie does use a neat camera angle/tactic, slow motion, or other tricks all the more stand-out. Thankfully, we've got one hell of an original score and soundtrack to accompany all of this and hearing hip-hop beats during Western action is truly a cool thing to witness. 

How is Idris Elba cool in literally any clothing?

"Pew pew!"

The film doesn't skimp on its action or violence either as they both come in bloody, sometimes gory, spades. Aside from the aforementioned transitions between action beats, the action is loud, fun, and entertaining, sometimes even featuring intricate choreography (which I feel is not usually the case in Westerns). In one of the many ways the film surprised me, the amount of and the impressiveness of the action is one of the biggest. 

Not so much a surprise, but probably the film's biggest strength, is the incredible cast. Jonathan Majors, Zazie Beetz, Delroy Lindo, Regina King, Idris Elba, Lakeith Stanfield, and more fill out the immense talent on display here, and the best part? They're all having a blast and 100% game for the fun western shenanigans and scene chewing that comes along with it. If I had to vote an MVP, it would be Stanfield's Cherokee Bill who, although he is good and quick at violence, is opposed to it. Stanfield provides a calm demeanor to the character you'd expect to be a little more crazy and the result is a thoughtful sub-villain to compliment Idris Elba's Rufus Buck aka "The Devil Himself". The story that intertwines these characters together is straight-forward, also a plus of the film, even if I think a couple character decisions were questionable. But given all the players, I was glad there wasn't some overly-intricate story so instead, the audience can just focus on having fun.

I've found that Netflix films generally tend to be of middling quality (though to be fair, I just straight up skip most of the bad ones), with a few gems in the pack. The Harder They Fall is one of those gems and should not be missed. It's a true popcorn Western with enough style and action to keep it on your mind for a long while. 

CONS

• Probably a little too long at 2+ hours
• Transitions within action sequences are a bit rough at times
• Questionable character decision at one point
• Idris Elba seems underutilized by the end

PROS

• Tons of style, without overdoing it. I had a blast with waiting and watching for these "neat" moments
• Awesome music all around with both the original score and soundtrack
• Good, sometimes great cinematography
• Straight forward story with a satisfying conclusion
• Awesome, bloody action. Even better? There's copious amounts of it!
• What. A. Cast! Everyone does fantastic and I'm sure audiences will have their favorites. Mine was Lakeith Stanfield
• Entertaining from start to finish with a handful of highly-memorable scenes

Rath's Review Score | 9.5/10