Let Him Go

Let Him Go is an Eastwood flick with Costner instead of Eastwood. Despite its subject matter with nice motifs, Let Him Go is somehow overly simple, merely floating on the surface. Together with Giacchino’s poetic western strumming that vainly tries to emulate the composer duo of Eastwood/Niehaus, the genre clichés serve only as confirmation of this film’s mediocrity. And that’s a shame – the assiduous Diane Lane is the only one who gives the film any indications of depth and the motif with the forlorn Indian has something to it. (26.11.2020)

A 1960s Western vibe, retired sheriff Kevin Costner and the always good and attractive Diane Lane are on the trail of their grandson who is in the hands of a violent man and a strange family. The film moves at a very slow pace but manages to build up the atmosphere nicely, at least from the family dinner – lately a major point of confrontation in – escalating with a scene in a room and culminating in an atmospheric finale where there is a bit of action. A powerful story with impressive performances, a tightly packed atmosphere and heightened emotion. Not for everyone but I enjoyed it. Story****, Action**, Humor>No, Violence**, Entertainment****, Music***, Visuals****, Atmosphere****, Suspense***. 7/10. (25.11.2020)

A suspense flick where almost everything works in a minimum of space. Costner and Lane had already proven themselves as a film couple in Man of Steel, and it was probably no coincidence that they reprised similar roles several years later. A typical Eastwood movie that lacks the traditional morose Eastwood, but instead there's a damn cool Costner in his typical "semi-scruffy guy" role that he's been playing for a good decade now, and it’s still fun, as it's apt, from life and avoids useless talk about nothing. Costner's character here is also the quiet type, but he's on point and the film's strongest moments are around him. In contrast, Diane Lane puts in a palette of expressive emotions and sometimes the writers untie her hands too much, overwhelming the viewer with dialogue that could have been shorter. Another great little film that is sometimes painful to watch, but throws in some interesting moments to ponder about family, relationships, life's losses, etc. (10.02.2021)

If you don’t know what build-up is, watch Let Him Go, an old-school film, with terrific performances by Diane Lane and Kevin Costner, and an atmosphere that thickens and thickens and thickens until it burns with flame. (05.02.2023)