Out of the Furnace

First things first: Scott Cooper directs the hell out of this movie. From the very first, perfectly framed shot (a fist fight that erupts at a drive in movie theater) through all the smoke stacks, right up until the second to the last shot (because that last shot... ugh! More on that later), this movie is directed so perfectly. Even if this movie turned out to be lousy, at least it would be pretty enough to be worth watching. Fortunately, it's not lousy. I wouldn't necessarily say its as great as I was hoping either, but it's far from lousy. It's yet another example this year of a movie that is sort of conventional but with great directing and acting, it appears far better than it really is. The best thing I can say about the film, script wise, is that it isn't predictable. I watch a lot of movies, and I feel like, most of the time, I know exactly what is going to happen the entire time before the movie even starts. That isn't the case with Out of the Furnace. There are quite a few instances where I thought I had things figured out, only to be surprised by what happens next. And, at the very, very least, that's something.
Out of the Furnace stars Christian Bale as Russell Baze, a good man who works at a mill in a small, Pennsylvania town. He has a pretty girlfriend (Zoe Saldana), a dying father, and a vet brother (Casey Affleck). Affleck's Rodney is the opposite of his brother. Sure, he's a good kid, too, but where Russell is all quiet and subdued, Rodney is a live-wire. He's tough and angry, ready to blow up at any second. Rodney finds himself mixed up with a redneck meth-head drug dealer (Woody Harrelson) and when he goes missing, Russell plans to track him down no matter what, and no matter who stands in his way.
At its worst, Out of the Furnace is a conventional, character piece, a movie that chooses character development over plot and story, and a movie with a snail's pace. At its best, however, it's a bleak, desolate tale of family love and hopelessness filmed so expertly that some of the shots literally take your breath away. It may be conventional, but it sure as hell is solid, as well. Part of that is due to Cooper, as I've already said, but a large part is due to the acting as well. Obviously, Christian Bale is one of our finest actors and he does so much with the quiet and controlled Russell. He may not have the showy scenes that his co-stars get, but he carries this movie with his eyes, and all the things he doesn't say. This movie, however, belongs to two absolutely monstrous supporting turns. Affleck, who I think is one of the most underrated actors out there, is absolutely superb, giving his best performance in, maybe, ever. There is one scene in particular, in which he finally explodes, that is brilliant, and left my heart pounding. But it's Harrelson that steals the show. His drug dealer, meth head is like a caged animal, pacing its cage, waiting to break free and kill its prey. Every moment he is on screen is electrifying. And where he has the ability to go over the top with this role, he never does. His best moment is one of his final moments, in which he finds out that Russell is Rodney's brother and gives a small smirk and nod of the head, like he knows exactly what is coming for him.
So, yes, Out of the Furnace is good, but it's not great. And I have decided to dock it an entire grade because of the terrible final shot of the film. Its a moment that pretty much makes no sense, and makes you question everything that has happened leading up to it. There are a lot of instances where the final shot almost ruins a movie for me. To this day, whenever I watch The Departed, I have to turn it off before that final heavy-handed shot with the rat. That movie is perfect save for that one moment. That's how I feel about Out of the Furnace, except the movie is far from perfect. It's definitely worth checking out at some point, but there's no rush. There will be plenty of other, better movies in the next few weeks.
Grade: B-