Lawless (2012)

The Very Best

8.0

Movie

United States of America
English
Crime, Drama, Western
2012
JOHN HILLCOAT
Alex Van, Bill Camp, Bruce McKinnon
115 min

What it's about

In 1931, the Bondurant brothers of Franklin County, Virginia, run a multipurpose backwoods establishment that hides their true business — bootlegging. Middle brother Forrest is the brain of the operation; older Howard is the brawn, and younger Jack, the lookout. Though the local police have taken bribes and left the brothers alone, a violent war erupts when a sadistic lawman from Chicago arrives and tries to shut down the Bondurants operation.

The take

Tom Hardy, Guy Pearce, Gary Oldman, Jessica Chastain, and Shia Laboeuf (the good Shia Laboeuf) all star in this true-story-based gangster tale. As a result, Lawless is cliché-free, fast, and violent - yet it doesn't take itself too seriously. Bootlegging Bondurant brothers live according to different rules, yet run a successful business during the prohibition era. When new authorities try to shut them down violently, each one of them has a way of dealing with it. The story runs very smoothly, and added to the perfect performances and great staging, Lawless becomes very entertaining, and a true pleasure to watch.

Comments

Add a comment

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

The Guilty (2018)

A minimalist, razor-sharp thriller that will have you gasping for air.

9.0

System Crasher (2019)

A tale of trauma and one of the most talked about movies on Netflix in 2020.

9.0

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

A star-studded and riveting legal drama with a blockbuster feel.

8.1

Infamous (2006)

A slightly embellished, often compared, retelling that depicts the classic novelist’s larger-than-life spirit

7.0

Forgotten Love (2023)

The stunning third take of the classic Polish pre-war melodrama

7.7

Leave the World Behind (2023)

Shyamalan meets Black Mirror in this hugely entertaining, visually inventive apocalyptic thriller with a killer ending

8.2

La Chimera (2023)

A dreamy, bewitching film that ponders on ideas of lostness and longing

8.0

La Belle Noiseuse (1991)

A sensual, spellbinding masterpiece depicting the creative process and its muse

8.1

A Silent Voice (2016)

A coming-of-age movie that circles around friendship and the atonement of a boy

8.7

Wind River (2017)

Sicario's screenwriter directs this story of murder in an Indigenous reserve

9.4

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.