Delayed Reaction: First Cow

Premise: Two men in Oregon County steal milk from the only cow in the area to make a treat that will earn them the money they need to get to San Francisco.

 

It feels like Kelly Reichardt is going to be one of my “white whale” directors: directors who I want to really like but are missing that last piece to get me there. I’ve only seen Meek’s Cutoff and First Cow. I like both movies. I dig her aesthetic. She puts together good casts and her storytelling is delightfully simple. I need that last push to get to where I understand how the New York Film Critics Circle could give First Cow their Best Picture award. I think I can get there. I still have a handful of her movies to see. Kind of like Jane Campion* with Power of the Dog, Reichardt may also be just one film away. For now, she’s in the category of directors like Stanley Kubrick, Spike Lee, or Wes Anderson who I fully accept as talents but haven’t made a film I really love that makes me ride or die for them.

 

*Look, I know it’s lazy on paper to compare two female directors like this, but they really do have some similar movies. Both look at the unglamorous side of the old west (in the US and New Zealand) and get similar kinds of performances out of actors.

 

The relative simplicity and low stakes are what work for me in First Cow. The central conflict is stolen milk and the grand dream is just to make it to San Francisco and start a shop. There’s a good message in there about the American dream and how hard the “bootstraps” message actually is to pull off. I like that Reichardt doesn’t connect all the dots for the audience. Like, the end. I’m assuming the protagonists are killed by the guy following them with the rifle, but the movie stops before that. It felt a bit too thin overall for me, similar to how Meek’s Cutoff was unresolved in ways. Perhaps I’m the one who needs to change how I watch Reichardt’s movies. For now though, this fell slightly short of me really digging it.

And, I realize that 1820s snacks don’t hold a candle to today’s sugary treats, but I badly want to try an oily cake. Anyone have a recipe? Do I just glaze a sugar cookie with honey?

 

Verdict: Weakly Recommend