The Proposition

• Directed by John Hillcoat
• September 12, 2005 (Toronto) / October 6, 2005 (Australia) / March 10, 2006 (UK)

In 1880s Australia a lawman apprehends an outlaw where he gives him nine days to kill his older brother, or his younger brother will be hanged.

For me checking out modern Westerns of any type or origin comes at great risk. While I don’t mind films with terrible people in them, what I do mind are films where everybody is unrepentantly terrible. Films where every character encountered is just a piece of crap are not my bag. The Proposition is no different.

I viewed this on Freevee and while watching a commercial for News of the World (which is now offered on Freevee) came on and I’m reminded that modern Westerns in general can have terrible people, but if they are beyond redemption or undeniably horrible then why watch? If everybody’s terrible, then you’re not invested in any outcome. That Tom Hanks Western had its fair share of terrible people but you cared about those involved. Here not so much. It is like your two most disliked coworkers getting in trouble. You hope they both go away.

The best any one individual character makes it to is pathetic. And that is the character of Mikey (Richard Wilson) who spends most of his screentime whimpering and crying while he waits for his older brother Charlie (Guy Pearce) to kill their older brother Arthur (Danny Huston) at the behest of Captain Morris Stanley (Ray Winstone) who views it as a big help in cleaning up the area.

These aren’t Robin Hood-esque outlaws or even charming, crazed killers. They’re all so incredibly unlikable. I really didn’t care what happened to any of them. And that is why I’m rather shocked I made it through the entire film. Maybe I was curious how this all connected to Christmas which is the deadline for the proposition from which the movie gets its title.

Or maybe it’s because I was curious about this Australian set western. I was inquisitive on how distinctly Australian it could be. Aside from some place names, Australia is not integral to the story. And you could be forgiven for forgetting that this is occurring in Australia. I don’t need to be beaten over the head with it. There’s just not a feel that makes it stand apart from any revisionist Western you might find produced and set within the United States accents aside.

There’s a fine cast assemble here. We have Guy Pearce, Ray Winstone, John Hurt, and Danny Huston among others. And while The Proposition is well written, it’s soooooo boring. The dialogue is great, but there is a lot of it and it rarely moves anything forward. At least not quickly. The story advances at a glacial pace before picking up to a mild trot. And that’s as exciting as the climax gets. They mistake brutality and revelations of how terrible a person that you already know is terrible for interesting developments.

The Proposition is well produced. They certainly weren’t hurting for money to do this. It looks like a lived in world. There’s plenty of activity and plenty going on in the background. No tight shots. Costuming is absolutely fantastic. These are not people trying to do the bare minimum with modern clothing to pass as stuff of the era but rather the costuming is aimed at genuine authenticity. The directing is good. John Hillcoat makes the most of what he has but what he has isn’t much when it comes to the script. With a little judicious editing this movie could’ve been 30 minutes shorter and much more engaging.

There’s not much of a plot here. In fact, there are not many twists or turns. Nothing develops far beyond the initial elements of the movie. There’s just a lot of interferences to the slow and inevitable end. And those hindrances don’t feel as if they connect to the main plot, but rather are little side quests that divert things much like the attention of a cat would be with a laser pointer.

I’m not well-versed in Australian history so if there’s a message or a point touching on that, I am ignorant of it. It touches on Aboriginals but not so strongly that it acts as commentary or conveys any message.

Ultimately The Proposition is not a proposition worth taking. It’s terrible people doing terrible things and being generally terrible. You won’t care who wins or loses. You’ll just be happy the credits roll. So skip it.