Opening in theaters on September 18th is the new historical drama 'The Weight', directed by Padraic McKinley, and starring Ethan Hawke ('Training Day'), Russell Crowe ('Gladiator'), Julia Jones ('Wind River'), Austin Amelio, Avi Nash, and Sam Hazeldine.
Related Article: Ethan Hawke and Julia Jones Talk Director Padraic McKinley's 'The Weight'
Initial Thoughts
They don’t make ‘em like this anymore. That’s the first thought that crosses one’s mind when watching ‘The Weight,’ which marks the feature film directorial debut of longtime editor, TV director, and producer Padraic McKinley. A clear love of straightforward, no-nonsense, tension-filled narrative shines through in McKinley’s efforts here, along with a finely-tuned sense of place and economical plot and character development.
The result is a rugged period melodrama that draws liberally from esteemed predecessors like 'The Treasure of the Sierra Madre,' ‘Deliverance,’ and ‘Sorcerer,’ anchored by superb performances from Ethan Hawke, Russell Crowe, and a solid supporting ensemble. Only a somewhat brusque, pat ending hampers the film from greatness, but this is still a gripping adventure worth catching on the big screen.
Story and Direction
It’s 1933, and Samuel Murphy (Hawke) is a widowed father and World War I veteran who’s struggling to find work and provide for himself and his young daughter in the depths of the Great Depression. When a run-in with some malicious cops sends Sam to a prison camp deep in the Oregon woods, he’s faced with a terrible dilemma: find a way to get out early before his daughter is put up for adoption and he loses her forever.
Salvation of a sort seems to come from the wily warden, Clancy (Crowe), who spots Sam’s resourceful nature and skills and offers him a job: smuggle a stash of gold out of a nearby mine and through the Oregon wilderness, and Clancy will see that Sam is released early. But if one bar of gold goes missing, Sam heads back to the slam and will never see his daughter again.
Taking three fellow convicts along with him – plus two of Clancy’s men to supervise them – Sam and his group head for the mine and abscond with the gold, while a young woman (Julia Jones) looking to escape her life there tags along. The ragtag posse begins its arduous journey across Oregon, where internal mistrust, natural dangers, and mysterious pursuers all threaten to end their quest – and their lives.
McKinley takes a tight script from Matthew Booi and Shelby Gaines and films it in equally efficient fashion, moving swiftly and cleanly from scene to scene – sometimes perhaps a bit too swiftly – with precision and clarity. A sense of dread is established as soon as Sam and his companions get into the woods, helped by the lush yet somehow ominous beauty of the forest around them, as captured by cinematographer Matteo Cocco. The interior of Oregon is played by locations in Bavaria, but it’s all real and the film benefits from it.
Drawing on his lengthy experience as an editor, McKinley creates several high-tension sequences, the best of which follows Sam and his group as they transport their haul of heavy gold bars over a rope bridge that makes the rickety crossing in ‘Sorcerer’ look like the Golden Gate. The combined weight of human and bars is too much for the bridge to bear, but the solution could send even one bar flying into the chasm below, and the sequence largely plays out for maximum suspense.
The director does have a tendency to hurry things along a bit, notably at the tail end of the bridge sequence and during the finale of the film itself, which works through its climactic developments in somewhat abrupt, almost perfunctory fashion. While the ending is well-earned, it doesn’t quite have the power it should, closing the film on a slightly off note.
Cast and Performances
Ethan Hawke is at a stage in his career where he can effortlessly move across a wide range of roles, as evidenced by recent work in films as diverse in style and genre as ‘Blue Moon’ and ‘Black Phone 2.’ He nails the role of Sam Murphy here, as the smart, kind-hearted, yet beleaguered everyman turns into both a leader and a ruthless fighter determined to win back his freedom at all costs.
He’s ably complemented by Russell Crowe, who might be starting a low-key Crowenaissance with this and his turn last year in ‘Nuremberg.’ While he still chows down on some scenery as he has done in recent years, his Clancy is a colorful character with some quirks that make him more than just the archetypal brutal prison warden.
The rest of the cast doesn’t quite get the space to build their characters, but even the stock types portrayed by Julia Jones and Austin Amelio get a jolt of energy and life from the terrific actors inhabiting the roles. Above all, everyone looks suitably rough-edged and well-worn, adding to the film’s realistic, grubby aesthetic.
Final Thoughts
‘The Weight’ surely fits the definition of a sleeper: with a sturdy narrative, excellent technical credits, and an eminently watchable cast, this is the kind of movie that viewers often find months after its initial release somewhere on streaming. With no high concept, no TikTok-able memes (although maybe ol’ Russell could generate one or two), and no flashy YouTube stars in front of or behind the camera, marketing this is a challenge.
But don’t – pardon the pun – sleep on it. ‘The Weight’ is worth catching in a theater, if only for the striking location shooting and the scale of some of its sequences, even for a modestly produced film. But most importantly, it’s an absorbing motion picture, best watched in a darkened cinema, and not between doing loads of laundry. They should make more like this.
‘The Weight’ receives a score of 85 out of 100.
What is the plot of ‘The Weight’?
When Samuel (Ethan Hawke) is torn from his daughter and sent to a brutal prison, Warden Clancy (Russell Crowe) offers him a high-stakes proposition: smuggle gold out of a remote mine with a dangerous crew of prisoners and he’ll win his freedom.
Who is in the cast of ‘The Weight’?
- Ethan Hawke as Samuel Murphy
- Russell Crowe as Warden Clancy
- Julia Jones as Anna
- Austin Amelio as Rankin
- Avi Nash as Singh
- Sam Hazeldine as Amis
- Lucas Lynggaad Tonnesen as Olson
- George Burgess as Letender
- Cameron Brady as The Man
- Avy Berry as Penny Murphy
- Alec Newman as Taggert
- Dylan Page as Mrs. Akers
- Peter Lewys Preston as Ed Akers
- Caspar Steinbeck as Joe Akers
Ethan Hawke Movies and TV Shows:
- 'Explorers' (1985)
- 'Dead Poets Society' (1989)
- 'Dad' (1989)
- 'White Fang' (1991)
- 'Mystery Date' (1991)
- 'Alive' (1993)
- 'Reality Bites' (1994)
- 'Before Sunrise' (1995)
- 'Gattaca' (1997)
- 'The Newton Boys' (1998)
- 'Great Expectations' (1998)
- 'Snow Falling on Cedars' (1999)
- 'Hamlet' (2000)
- 'Waking Life' (2001)
- 'Tape' (2001)
- 'Training Day' (2001)
- 'Taking Lives' (2004)
- 'Before Sunset' (2004)
- 'Assault on Precinct 13' (2005)
- 'Lord of War' (2005)
- 'Fast Food Nation' (2006)
- 'Before the Devil Knows You're Dead' (2007)
- 'Brooklyn's Finest' (2010)
- 'Daybreakers' (2010)
- 'Total Recall' (2012)
- 'Sinister' (2012)
- 'Getaway' (2013)
- 'Before Midnight' (2013)
- 'The Purge' (2013)
- 'Boyhood' (2014)
- 'Predestination' (2015)
- 'In a Valley of Violence' (2016)
- 'The Magnificent Seven' (2016)
- 'Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets' (2017)
- 'First Reformed' (2018)
- 'Tesla' (2020)
- 'The Black Phone' (2022)
- 'The Northman' (2022)
- 'Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery' (2022)
- 'Raymond & Ray' (2022)
- 'Moon Knight' (2022)
- 'The Last Movie Stars' (2022)
- 'Wildcat' (2024)
- 'Leave the World Behind' (2023)
- 'Blue Moon' (2025)
- 'Black Phone 2' (2025)
- 'The Weight' (2026)
