The Killers of The Flower Moon

The Killers of the Flower Moon is Martin Scorcsese’s latest film, a movie adaption based on Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI is a 2017 nonfiction book by American journalist David Grann about the Osage murders. It was beautifully executed and if the idea of a 3.5 hour movie seems impossible to sit through, let me reassure you that each minute is jam packed. The history of the Osage people is rich and the tragedies that overcame them led to the FBI’s first homicide investigation. The way the characters are portrayed leaves you unsure of who is at fault, even though you are privy from the start. It is the emotional side of it. Ernest Burkhart, played by Leo DiCaprio, is a pushover of a man driven by money. His biggest fault is believing he would put the love of his wife and children above that when his actions say otherwise. Mollie Burkhart, portrayed by Lily Gladstone with perfection, was his wife and lost her sister, mother, and youngest child to white men marrying into the family trying to claim their estate. Murders were commissioned by William Hale, who was responsible for the town's wealth by his own demise. He would claim ownership to the inheritance of many Osage people through many tactics, but presented friendly and claimed to be an ally. He spoke their language and cared for the families; all while orchestrating these crimes against these people. The movie ends in an auditorium, where it is revealed that this story has been told to an audience as a true crime reading. This was established in the book as the FBI took these murders to a radio show and used it to publicize their legitimacy and success. This forever tainted the Osage history, until now as Scorsese himself arrives to close the performance in the final moments of the movie. Taking the place of the radio drama narrator, he reads the part of the story that never made it into The Lucky Strike Hour: what happened to Mollie, the heroine of Scorsese’s version of the story. He reads the basic details of the rest of her life and her death in 1937. Scorsese’s words, describing Mollie’s obituary, are the final ones we hear in the film: “There was no mention of the murders.”

It’s long and I have no stance on its accuracies or faults, but it is worth the watch. 

Ratings:

Acting: 9.9/10

Filming/Lighting: 9.9/10

Editing: 8.2/10

Overall Movie: 9.6/10

There were a couple of editing choices I would have executed differently, but that is me being nitpicky as an editor. PLEASE watch this film.