The Proposition

We’ve all heard how big name starts do smaller, independent films to keep their resume “fresh.” In Tom Cruise’s case, we have Magnolia. Guy Pierce, star of the independent hit Memento, later went on to do a big-budget film called The Count of Monte Cristo, but went back to the independent scene and made a small film called The Proposition.

The Proposition takes place in the late nineteenth century in “wild west” of Australia. Captain Stanley (Ray Winstone) has been asked to capture a notorious gang comprised of brothers. The film opens up with a bloody shootout, and the capture of two of the three brothers. In an act of compassion, and bargaining, Stanley offers a deal to Charles Burns (Guy Pierce), the middle brother. If he captures his older, more violent brother and returns him to jail before Christmas, he will spare his life, along with his younger sibling.

And so, the search begins. The film then splits into two storylines: Charles in search of his older brother Arthur (Danny Huston), to save his little brother, Mike (Richard Wilson); and Captain Stanley and his wife Martha (Emily Watson) keeping the townsfolk from killing the captive.

Guy Pierce, the seemingly star of the film, doesn’t really spend a lot of screen time capturing the audience’s attention. Though the film is split in nearly two parts, the stories move so slowly, it all just melds together. In his effort to save his brother, Charles must find his brother in the dessert. Unfortunately, that’s about all he does the entire length of the film; searches the dessert. And when he locates his brother, not much happens their either.

The dialogue does not aid in helping the audience relate to the characters and their needs. By the end of the film, I was asking myself why I wanted Charles to be successful. The only character I related to, cared for, was that of the Captain, a good man trying to be fair and just in a land with little law at the time. His struggles, no only in order of the public, spill over to his home life, creating more depth than all the rest of the characters combined.

Unfortunately, this film doesn’t have much replay value, or play value for that matter. I try not to give bad reviews, but outside of the strong performance of Ray Winstone and Emily Watson, I’m not sure I would recommend this film to anyone that wasn’t interested in just getting rid of time. It’s a period story about a deal made with convicts, but fizzles when we all fail to understand why we care for the outcome. And when that outcome arrives, you wonder why it was worth your money to watch it happen. It’s not the worst film I’ve seen; not by a long shot. But it falls far--down towards the dusty ground Charles endlessly searches--from the ranks these actors deserve. 5.5 of 10 (D+)