The Harder They Fall

A well-executed western, no doubt about that. The visuals, action scenes, and the soundtrack — packed with reggae, soul, and old-school black rhythms — are all on point and definitely exceeded my expectations. The colorful set design and cinematography also deserve a shoutout. But when it comes to the characters and their dialogue, it all falls flat. The story itself is simple, so there's no need to overcomplicate things with drawn-out conversations and unnecessary emotions. Westerns don’t need that kind of baggage. If they had kept it straightforward, letting the visuals and music carry the weight, it would’ve been a much tighter, more enjoyable film. (16.11.2021)

We were all kind of hoping for a spectacular western romp to rival his genre cult classics, but this was just bad. In fact, apart from Idris Elba, a surprisingly uncomplicated plot that's easy to grasp at first blush, and clarity in the characters, we don't really get anything significant, and everything else is crap. The running time is tiresome, it's terribly pedestrian for a western, the wannabe funny lines don't help either, the main theme is uninteresting and seen hundreds of times, the action doesn't work and the whole film feels terribly tired and talky. Or proof that when an inexperienced director who has no mastery of the craft takes such a bite, the result can suck. Those who skip the film will save themselves 130 minutes of their lives. Before the film I was hoping that the Boo! ratings were just spamming bots, but alas that is not the case and the current 25% pretty much sums up the film. (03.11.2021)

Oh, come on! This film isn’t as bad as some people say! We all know what bothers viewers who rated The Harder They Fall poorly, but in the end, this Netflix western entertained me. Yes, the comparisons with Django are completely off; Tarantino’s film is in a completely different league quality-wise. The Harder They Fall relies heavily on its captivating, colorful visuals, which pleasantly surprised me. The acting is also top-notch, with everyone involved delivering strong performances. In terms of action, I have to highlight the excellent prologue and the train robbery scene; however, the over-the-top finale didn’t quite work for me. So why am I only giving it three stars when I’ve mentioned only positives so far? It’s clear that the film wasn’t made by someone more capable. Listening to the dull dialogues can be quite taxing at times. And the digital blood is everywhere. But in the end, I’ll give it a 6/10. (09.11.2021)