Director: Padraic McKinley
Starring: Ethan Hawke, Russell Crowe, Julia Jones, Austin Amelio, Avi Nash, Lucas Lynggaard Tønnesen, George Burgess, Sam Hazeldine
Certificate: 15
Run Time: 113 mins

The Weight is a historical drama and long-time editor Padraic McKinley’s directorial debut. Set during the Great Depression, Ethan Hawke plays Samuel Murphy, a World War I veteran and widower who’s struggling to provide for his young daughter Penny (Avy Berry). He loses his home early into the film and while attending a viewing, gets provoked into a fight by plainclothes policemen and is then sent to prison. A distraught Penny is sent to a children’s home. After four months, Murphy is transferred to the Deschutes County Convict Laboratory Camp, where prisoners can reduce their sentences by clearing roads and he quickly impresses Warden Clancy (Russell Crowe) with his skills, prompting the Warden to offer him a dangerous job for an early release.

While The Weight has a rather straightforward plot and doesn’t really pack any surprises, this is a largely entertaining romp that’s clearly indebted to gritty 1970s New Hollywood cinema, such as Sorcerer and Deliverance. Although its familiarity means the film never really reaches greatness, it’s bolstered by an excellent Ethan Hawke performance – he conveys a man who can fix pretty much anything brilliantly and I really bought his relationship with his daughter and the stakes he faces. There’s fun supporting turns from Russell Crowe and Julia Jones too, with Crowe clearly enjoying himself. The score by Shelby and Latham Gaines does what you’d expect it to and never really elevates the film, and it’s dimly shot by Matteo Cocco with a graininess that evokes the time period.

There’s some skills that McKinley could sharpen – there’s some set pieces in this film that aren’t as exciting as they should be because they’re over too quickly and are poorly edited, which is ironic given his background. The film’s also oddly paced and after an excellent set-up, occasionally sags in its second and third acts. It’s been announced that McKinley will be directing the long-awaited Sicario 3 and what made both Sicario and Sicario 2: Soldado so strong were their heart-raising action sequences. I’m worried McKinley isn’t the right choice on the basis of this film. The Weight is ultimately a competent historical drama that’s anchored by Ethan Hawke’s committed performance and some suitably bleak cinematography, but not much more.