Look at that cast. How could that possibly go wrong? John Malkovich,
Billy Bob Thornton, Michael Stuhlbarg, Bruce Dern and Oliver Platt are
starring in a Coen-esque thriller about murder in a small town? Where do
I get in line to buy a ticket? Sadly, "Cut Bank" is another piece of
evidence that proves the case that filmmaking is not the sum of its
parts. And while there's some undeniably inherent joy in just seeing
some of these great actors play off each other, the sum here is a
shockingly dull affair, almost made more disappointing by the talent it
wastes. It is also evidence in another film criticism case--the one that
proves that the balance of crime and comedy that the Coens defined for
so many copycats in films like "Fargo" and "No Country For Old Men" is
significantly harder to pull off than some people think it looks. From
the beginning, "Cut Bank" isn't just tonally inconsistent, it doesn't
really have one. It's flat. There's no sense of rhythm, tension, or
atmosphere.
-- Brian Tallerico. Review of the movie "Cut Bank" (April 3, 2015)
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/cut-bank-2015