‘I followed all of the rules, man’s and God’s. And you, you followed none of them…’
I mean this in the gentlest possible way, but some films… well… they just look boring don’t they. The problem with Legends of the Fall, aside from my natural aversion to westerns, is that everything about this film appears tedious from the outside. The title. The poster. The plot. But the talent behind it can’t be denied. I’ve put off watching this one for ages, but, having found myself at a rare cinematic loose end, I finally found time to watch it, and sure enough, as ever, I was wrong. Legends of the Fall isn’t boring. In fact, if anything, too much happens…
Legends of the Fall presents us with the story of the Ludlow family. Colonel William Ludlow (Anthony Hopkins) leaves the military and moves his family to rural Montana at the turn of the century due to his disgust at how the American government is treating the Native American population. His three sons, portrayted by Brad Pitt, Aidan Quinn and Henry Thomas, become obsessed with local girl Susannah Fincannon (Julia Ormond) at varying points in their lives.
Despite being over two hours long, there just isn’t enough time to give this story enough room to breathe. This is the kind of film that would be perfect as a six part mini series. Spanning five decades through the early 1900s, World War I and the prohibition era, Legends of the Fall is a sprawling, melodramatic epic in the style of John Steinbeck’s East of Eden, but we don’t spend enough time with all of the characters to really feel the weight of the events that transpire in the film’s third act. Pitt delivers a sullen, downbeat performance that makes his character difficult to like (probably not helped by the fact that he fell out with director Edward Zwick constantly throughout filming), but Quinn and Hopkins are both typically excellent, and John Toll’s gorgeous cinematography, combined with Zwick’s assured direction, ensure that Legends of the Fall is always pretty to look at and aesthetically compelling.
So, Legends of the Fall isn’t boring. It’s an extremely competent retelling of a potted family history that strains for greatness but just falls short of the mark. Pitt completists or fans of ’90s cinema more generally will surely find much to enjoy here.
