News of the World

I certainly didn’t expect a slow western about people from Paul Greengrass. The dynamic directing with the shaky camera, so typical for his work, is gone. Hanks’ Captain Kidd spends his time riding from city to city, reading his newspaper to the folks there, taking an orphan girl to her surviving family in Texas that he came across during his travels. There is precisely one action scene in this movie and it works excellently, even though there aren’t many bullets, if you disregard the horse bolting, nothing dramatic happens. But the power of this movie lies in the girl’s final dialog with a friend from school and in the little scenes when the girl sings to herself when grooming the horse. A very unusual western which, while not coming up with anything new, certainly doesn’t offend. (02/22/2021)

News from the World skillfully combines a western road movie and an adventure drama, spiced with a dash of action. Story-wise, it is not a particularly complex film – as we travel from A to B, there is a mutual self-exploration, interspersed with a series of adventures and ending with a satisfying (if predictable) denouement. Even so, for two hours I was swept along on a nicely told tale of a spunky veteran and a vivacious girl brought together by fate. Tom Hanks guarantees a quality performance and the role of "The Captain" really suited him. The young Helena Zengel certainly didn't let herself be overshadowed by her more famous colleague and gave an equally convincing performance. As already mentioned, the film does not lack action (the chase and the shootout at the rocks), nor strong, even touching moments, like Johanna's homecoming or the reunion with the wife, and besides that it offers beautiful shots of natural scenery, which are enhanced by an unforgettable musical score. (04/25/2021)

A beautiful film full of important ideas. Tom Hanks can't even do it any other way, and so once again he acts great and the western environment suits him very much. Paul Greengrass kind of gave up on being Paul Greengrass and pops his head up only a few times, but that’s fine, because the story is told one hundred percent skillfully, and however much the final quarter hour can be predicted, it affected me exactly as they planned. If you (didn't) like the slightly more melancholy The Homesman with Tommy Lee Jones, expect the same from News of the World. (02/10/2021)

A few years after the Civil War, Captain Kidd is traveling through Texas reading the news to the people. One day he comes across a little girl who was once abducted by Indians, and he decides to return her to her relatives. But it's not going to be an easy journey. This intimate western relies on great cinematography, music and an excellent Tom Hanks in the lead role, and isn't afraid of a slower pace, but unfortunately it tells a story that is woefully transparent and not very revelatory. And ultimately a little boring. (01/21/2021)

I can imagine this could have been a real western hit, especially with Netflix making it accessible to a wide audience. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out that way, which is a shame because the names behind this project promised much more! With Paul Greengrass directing and writing, James Newton Howard composing, Dariusz Wolski on cinematography, and Tom Hanks as the lead, it had a strong lineup. It’s surprising that Howard came out the best of the bunch; his soundtrack balanced well between building tension (during shootouts and desert storms) and calm moments, with a nearly melancholic touch. While the film’s beautiful scenery helped, the plot seemed rather sterile. I didn’t feel that the bond between Hanks and the little girl progressed to a higher level during those two hours; True Grit does this much better. It does have its moments (the ending is satisfying), but as a whole, it doesn’t measure up to the best genre pieces. For me, it’s 6.5/10. (07/16/2021)