Hell or High Water

This is another Bechdel test-failing, steak-and-eggs genre picture from Starred Up director David Mackenzie, with another lean and hard-boiled script from Sicario screenwriter Taylor Sheridan. Chris Pine and Ben Foster star as West Texas bank robber brothers, the former a lifelong straight arrow trying to pay off a debt, the latter a loose cannon career criminal. Jeff Bridges is the gruff Texas ranger on their trail, a grizzled widower on the verge of retirement, all too eager to stave off his inevitable appointment with the rocking chair. All of the performances are strong, with Bridges especially nailing a tailor-made part, but it’s hard to shake the feeling that this is essentially No Country for Old Men without the existential poetry. Hollywood used to turn out solidly constructed, midsized genre films like this by the score, but now they’re so rare that Hell or High Water practically seems like a unicorn.