For a film that is truly hard to pin down in terms of tone, plot and character development, it’s an immense shame that the dialogue just doesn’t stack up. Too often can you predict what’s going to come out of the mouths of these characters too often are you groaning at a line you’ve heard in a million movies before. That’s a good thing, because the dialogue in Let Him Go often borders on unbelievability and cliche. Together, they form a formidable team, and whether it’s the quiet looks between them in a tense situation in the Weboy’s home, or the loving ones across a steak dinner as they reminisce on their life together, they bring a level of prestige and confidence to their performances that sucks you in. Costner’s George Blackledge is a quiet, imposing, retired sheriff, who fully understands his wife’s strength and will, and supports her even in this crazy endeavour. Lane’s Margaret Blackledge is a wild stallion, who will fight tooth and nail to get what she wants. Costner and Lane are utterly believable as an aged couple who are deeply in tune with one another’s idiosyncrasies. One of the most impressive feats of Let Him Go is the chemistry of its two leads. Bezucha never lets these get out of hand though, and despite the movie juggling so many tonal shifts, it never fails the balancing act. There are definite tonal issues here, indeed some that will make you laugh (the hard switch from Montana countryside to the ‘evils’ of North Dakota being one where the film magic at work to create a visible difference overtakes any effective use of the sequence). But he doesn’t pull any punches with this movie, and his penchant for romance and melodrama blend well with the sinister and bleak tone of the movie's more deranged elements. Without a shadow of a doubt though, everyone can agree that Let Him Go is gripping cinema.ĭirector Thomas Bezucha isn’t known for his dramatic work, having previously directed Monte Carlo and The Family Stone, both decidedly different fare to what’s on offer here. Let Him Go is hard to pigeonhole, because it does so many things well - a tense drama, a believable romance, a treatise on dealing with grief. Shocked at the sudden departure, and worried about Donnie’s nature, George and Margaret road trip to North Dakota, only to have their worst fears confirmed - Donnie and the rest of the Weboy family are abusive and feared, not just by Lorna but also by the town, and they set about trying to get their grandson back. She marries again, to a young man named Donnie Weboy (Will Brittain), who soon spirits her and the boy away from George and Margaret and their ranch in Montana, to live with his mother Blanche (Lesley Manville) in North Dakota. George Blackledge (Kevin Costner) and his wife Margaret (Diane Lane) grieve the loss of their only son, whose tumble off a horse left his wife Lorna (Kayli Carter) a widow with a young boy.
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