A Fever Dream Revisited

Beyond the horizon: Andrew Dominik's The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford

When New Zealand director Andrew Dominik's lyrical western parable The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford was released in 2007, it was, for the most part, completely ignored by the majority of the moviegoing public. Warner Brothers, which distributed the film, faithlessly announced its arrival with little fanfare and shoveled a few prints to a smattering of arthouse cinemas. The film quickly disappeared before the thundering drums of the 2007 Oscar season announced a crop of more visible fare, such as No Country For Old Men and There Will Be Blood, as art cinema's annointed representatives for that year. But time has been kind to Dominik's elegiac meditation on western mythology, and its reputation has only grown stronger since its release. Aided by Roger Deakins' striking cinematography, a glacially-paced but absorbing narrative, and a handful of eclectic performances (including what may be topliner Brad Pitt's finest), The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford is one of the most exquisitely crafted westerns ever made.