It’s Worthy to Come Hell or High Water

Release Date：Aug/26/2016

Genre：Crime/Drama

Director：David Mackenzie

Cast：Jeff Bridges、Chris Pine、Ben Foster

Viola's Rating：8.7

What price would you pay to protect those you love no matter what happens? What if it’s illegal, will it be the last thing you do before you die or go behind the bars? “Hell or High Water” tells you to fight for what you believe.

This crime drama talks about a divorced father, Toby, and his older brother, Tanner, who was sent to jail for robbing banks, resort to a desperate scheme in order to save their family's ranch in West Texas at where they find petroleum that can save Toby’s children from poverty.

Throughout the feature film, the audience takes on an adventure with two main characters. Of course we know that the robbers are Tanner and Toby, but unlike most crime films, in “Hell or High Water”, viewers aren’t omniscient, but have to comprehend the story through well-organized details. These brilliant details serve as bookends in the plot, and give moviegoers more chances to ponder how and why the protagonists do things.

When it comes to “protagonist”, “Hell or High Water” challenges the dualistic thinking of good and bad. A successful motion picture needs to get its audience to agree with, empathize with even support the main characters even if they are the so-called criminals. In “Hell or High Water”, there are several times that Tanner and Toby almost get caught, and sitting in the theater, you can feel people inhaling because nobody wants them to be arrested. That support is the most powerful and most strong feeling a movie can give us.

Deeper than that, “Hell or High Water” embodies the sacredness of different kinds of love, including brotherhood, family relationship and friendship. Apparently, Tanner would probably go back to jail anytime soon anyway if not helping Toby, but just as Nicholas Cage in “Gone in Sixty Seconds”, brotherhood is the only, amazing love that people would sacrifice everything for. Also, Toby’s family is the reason that makes “mommy’s good boy” want to rob banks, and on the other hand, the friendship between the Texas Ranger and his partner is profound. The most valuable of all is that none of these is presented through words.

As a picture set in Texas, beer, cowboys and football are necessary, not to mention the rugged plain, desert and mountains. Even though it’s not a typical western feature film, aficionados of cowboys won’t be disappointed. With the western style songs, the audience would immerse in the atmosphere sitting back rocking chair with a handful of beer.

All in all, “Hell or High Water” is indeed entertaining and exciting to watch, but at the same time, it provides us some deep messages to think about. It’s just a perfect 102-minute to come hell or high water.