Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2503 in DVD
• Released on: 2008-03-31
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
• Formats: Colour, Dolby, PAL, Subtitled, Surround Sound
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 153 minutes

Special Features
This limited collector's edition of The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford contains the following extras:

- A hard-back premium packaging with a 44-page book all about the film, the legend and the characters
- A bonus disc featuring the documentary Death of An Outlaw that examines the life and death of the real Jesse James and includes interviews with all the key cast and filmmakers

Synopsis
Based on the 1983 novel by Ron Hansen, THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD captivatingly depicts the final few months of the legendary Jesse James's life. He was 34, and his days of ruthless robbing had dwindled, yet his fearsome reputation continued to swell. With an abundance of nickel-books retelling his brutal gun-slinging adventures, James (portrayed by Brad Pitt, in one his most convincing and moving roles) had become a symbolic hero for many Americans, and a dazzling tabloid icon for the 19th-century media. A particular young man seduced by the wonderment of James, the shifty Robert Ford (a breakthrough performance by Casey Affleck), wormed his way in as a James groupie, in the hopes of snagging a coveted spot alongside his brother Charley (played by the always affable Sam Rockwell) as one of the bandit's cronies. Ford, fiercely insecure and painfully aware that he would never be taken seriously by James (who, ever-plagued by paranoia and scepticism, found Ford's earnest obsession a bit unsettling), grew increasingly angry with his idol, leading to a destructive path that ultimately ended in the anticlimactic death of Jesse James--and brought the treacherous Robert Ford the notoriety he had always wanted.


Although this film takes place in the late 1800's, its eerie relevance to modern-day celebrity-obsession scandals is astounding, and adds a fresh scope to what could be viewed as just another cinematic western. Director Andrew Dominick (CHOPPER) furthers the film from its genre by banishing cliched bullet-infested showdown scenes, instead embracing the relationships and interactions of the outlaws, and creates a mood of brooding and contemplation with exceptional camera angles and lighting. His intensely sophisticated approach to filmmaking illustrates the darkest corners of the characters, and insightfully provides a deeper, heartfelt portrayal revealing what the men might have been like behind their masks.

Customer Reviews

Indeed
That was possibly the biggest let down in the history of film. I enjoyed Waterworld more!

absolute briliance
I watched this film expecting to like it and was pleasantly suprised. It could even be, dare I say it, one of my favourite films.
The acting by all of the actors is faultless but Brad Pitt as the clearly quite disturbed Jesse James and Casey Affleck as Robert Ford are brilliant. The atmosphere between the two characters is electric from the outset and is built apon throught the film untill the actuall assasination. You even feel sorry for Robert Ford before the inevitable happens. The film itself flows almost like poetry, helped by a narrator that gives a narrative of the final years of Jesse James as the film goes on. Some reviewers have commented on how 'even the narrator sounds bored' but to me, the slow, dreary voice of the narrator works in the films favour.
Although i personally thought the film was genious, i can see why some people might not like it as it is a very slow pace film.
In my opinion the best of the modern batch of westerns that are being released recently but i haven't seen 'there will be blood' so that spot could well be taken soon.

not your typical western
i stopped watching westerns a long time ago thinking they had had their day. the long title of this film intrigued me nevertheless and i was so glad that curiosity got the better of me. Conditioned by 'orthodox' westerns i wondered where the 'action' was until i realised i was watching a work of art which needed close attention. The dialogue, the photography (landscapes, skies), lighting (the night robbery of a train early on stayed with me )the wonderful music score, the camera lingering on shots, the slow and tense unfolding of the inevitable with an unexpected coda ending; it held me and i didn't want it all to end. The principals were brilliant, especially Affleck and all praise to the supporting cast. this film is immensely satisfying and made me want to watch it all over again to discover what i may have missed.