When it comes to making Westerns, one key aspect of them that makes the films standout in the eyes of the audience are the wide varieties of stories the genre possesses. Audiences not only find themselves looking forward to the action portion of the stories, but also become invested in the plot as well as the characters. That most certainly appears to be the case with the genres newest release titled News Of The World starring two time consecutive Academy Award Winner Tom Hanks with it being directed by Oscar nominated director Paul Greengrass. Having shared a history of both working together previously on 2013's acclaimed drama Captain Philips with the results being successful, the two find themselves pairing up once again to deliver a powerful and affecting Western drama which showcases the strength of both men's talents on film with a surprisingly mesmerizing performance from young supporting actress Helena Zengel.
The plot for News Of The World transports audiences back to 1870's Texas with a veteran (Tom Hanks) traveling from town to town with him making a living by reading stories to crowds from newspapers from all over the world. When he comes across a 10-year old German girl (Helena Zengel) taken by the Kiowa people six years earlier and raised as their own, he inadvertently becomes responsible for returning her to her surviving family. To Western fans, News Of The World has a narrative that feels familiar with it bearing similarities to True Grit. Though its story-structure has been done before, the overall experience itself is one that's extremely slow-paced though an absorbing one that carries emotional power to it thanks to Hanks masterful performance, as well as Greengrass pure craftsmanship as a filmmaker. The combination of these two working together results in an experience that's superbly acted and filmed with both having a natural professional relationship in which they understand how the other person works, along with bringing out their sheer talent and skills. The heart of the film lies within the performances of its main leads with the audience becoming invested in their story. For both Hanks and Greengrass, the film serves as being uncharted territory for them with their admirable efforts to tell an intriguing type of Western story ending with one that's not just thoroughly entertaining, but also well-filmed and succeeds in making the audience becoming connected with both Hanks and Zengel's characters on screen. For some audiences, the story may be too slow-paced for them to find the plot interesting. Others who appreciate this genre as well as genuinely solid filmmaking will find News Of The World to be a Western that relies on old and familiar formula to tell its story, but still manages to be solidly effective at doing so.
Whereas Paul Greengrass keeps the films narrative and story-structure focused, it's the performances of both Tom Hanks and Helena Zengel that make the story engaging to audiences with their convincing performances. One of the most notable traits of Greengrass films is the amount of realism that his actors bring to each story, with the audience totally finding themselves believing that they're in the moment with these characters with the performances in News Of The World being no exception. Both Hanks and Zengel work extroadinarily well off each other while showcasing chemistry that feels natural, along with making their character dynamic come across as being spot-on. Hanks commands the screen as Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd, a former member of the Confederate Army who served in the 3rd Texas Infantry, making a living but traveling from town to town reading newspapers to the populace for a total of ten cents per person. Hanks portrays his character as being a dedicated person to his work, along with person a person without kin due to him losing his wife to cholera. Hanks demonstrates a firm group on playing his character with him showing a great deal of emotional range, most notably in the scenes where he cares for Zengel's characters well-being. Helena Zengel delivers a wonderfully terrific performance as Johanna, the young girl who Kidd comes across during his travel with him being left with no choice but to look after. Despite Zengel having minimal dialogue and speaking in a different language throughout their whole ordeal, she still manages to do a fantastic job of playing her character as well as expressing a great deal of emotional acting. The heart of the film lies within both the performances and character arc that both her and Hanks present on the screen. The audience remains consistently engaged with the story due to their dynamic, which often helps in overlooking the films slow-burning pace. The rest of the cast deliver effective performances despite the main leads largely dominating the screen with Thomas Francis Murphy giving his character both a striking and terrifying presence as the would-be authoritarian leader Farley, who insists that Hanks character read the local propaganda news about forcing everyone out of the area who isn't white. Murphy's character is not only thrilling to watch despite his small role, but his subplot bears a disturbing connection with the modern era in regards to disinformation, making Kidd's characters attempts to heal a fractured nation by going around it and reading the news a noble deed. Other welcomed cast members who wonderfully fill up the screen include Mare Winnigham as Kidd's friend Doris Boudlin, Micha Covino, Fred Hechinger, and Neil Sandilands, Ray McKinnon, and Elizabeth Marvel. As far as performances go, everyone plays their parts convincingly and add something to the film in regards to believability. Despite everyone attempting to juggle the brief amounts of screen presence they have, it's the amazing performances of Hanks and Hengel that connect the audience to the story and ultimately make them care about their ordeal. With performances such as the one Thomas Francis Murphy delivers that's exceptionally acted out, audiences feel the tension of the scene with them becoming concerned about the main characters safety. Regardless of how audiences feel about Greengrass films, the acting always gets marked as being one of his films highest points.
In terms of directing, this is is Greengrass at his most restrained and straight-forward in comparison to his previous works in which he used rapidly shaking camera work that gave his films a documentary style of filmmaking. Greengrass still proves to be most effective at crafting stories, which are surrounded by realism along with drawing the audience into the story. He does a terrific job of creating a background landscape that looks and feels like 1860's Texas during the Civil War era. The film is well-shot with cinematography that captures striking wide views of mountains, canyons, and plains with both the costume and set decoration accurately depicting the films historical time period. They not only work well in making the films story appear as being authentic, but also showing a tattered nation with the characters clothes being work out. The editing gives the film a slow-burning pace which tests the audience patience, while allowing enough time for Kidd and Johanna's relationship to grow. The score by James Newton Howard is both low-key and sombre with it fitting the story thematically, while carrying moments where the music appears bigger in scope. On both a technical and storytelling front, director Greengrass does a masterful job of bringing a war torn 1800's United States to life with its authenticity being richly detailed. He does well with keeping the pacing of the film steady enough to allow the experience to be an absorbing one for the audience, with the relationship between Kidd and Johanna feeling like a natural progression rather than appearing rushed or forced. Whereas Paul Greengrass work is known mainly for his ability to take stories centering around teal-life events and bring then to the big screen in a form that feels larger-than-life, News Of The World has the highly skillful filmmaker trying his hand at a different genre and largely succeeding at presenting a different narrative.
The script written by both Greengrass and Like Davies takes direct inspiration from the works of both True Grit and The Mandalorian in regards to the whole subplot involving an older person looking after a young child with them ultimately becoming their undisclosed caretaker. An obvious reference to those would be the dynamic between Kidd and Johanna with the latter taking direct inspiration from Mattie Ross's character in True Grit. Although both Greengrass and Davies place the main leads relationship as being the soul of the movie, they manage to incorporate themes that feel strikingly relevant to today's world despite the film taking place in the mid 1800's era. The concept of Kidd trying to share real news with people from all walks of life along with keeping them informed, painfully mirrors today's predicament with the country as a whole being fragmented in regards to people's selecting of which news to buy as fact, while disregarding the rest as fiction if it doesn't match up with their agenda. Greengrass and Hanks choose to show a country that was deeply divided as well as barely remaining intact due to fighting a civil war with Kidd trying to deliver news to people that might or might've been censored from them due to which side their fighting on. The character of Farley represents a dictatorish authorative figure, whose forcefully selective of which piece of news his people get to hear so long as it fuels his agenda of keeping everything that's non-white below everyone else. The scene in which Kidd's character is forced by Farley to read the local propaganda to his community, yet chooses another piece of news to read to them while allowing Farley's people the opportunity to decide for themselves what they want to hear, is both a significant and powerful moment with him giving Farley's people the chance to speak up for themselves despite being under Farley's control. News Of The World carries other themes that run parallel to today's world such as a divided America that's combating racism, the relocating of Native Americans that's strikingly similar to the issue with migrant children at the border, the hard lives lived by settlers in the west, while also covering topics that make the story feel personal such as the death of family, the circle of life, finding ones true family heritage only to embrace a new one with a stranger who essentially becomes a parent or guardian throughout their ordeal. The script has a lot of issues at play within its story despite its basic plot which has been done before essentially. Although the story beats feel familiar, Greengrass finds ways to make everything feel fresh and engaging to watch, while drawing parallels between the two different eras. At the heart of the films writing however, lies a beautiful yet subtle message that's eloquently stated in the film saying that in order for one to move forward they must first remember, then choose to create new memories. That message is driven home through Johanna's character with her distant relatives, and wanting to run away again when remembering what happened to her parents. Her old memories emerge when she rediscovers her past with her creating new ones through her experience with Kidd. On the surface, the plot for News Of The World is effective but feels familiar to other films within the genre with similar storylines. Despite the landscape of the story feeling repititive, Greengrass and Davies incorporate themes and scenarios that are not only thought-provoking but serve as being reflective of modern times. The story gets its power from those themes, as well as the character arc that both main characters experience in their journey together through a split country and era that closely resembles modern times.
If there's one thing about News Of The World that stands out in regards to its filmmaking, it's the amount of thoughtfulness and heart that both its filmmakers and main stars put into making it an emotionally charged experience. Given that this was unfamiliar territory to both Hanks and Greengrass in exploring the Western genre, it becomes clear upon watching the film that both men wanted to make their story a different type of Western than what audiences are generally accustomed to. The end result is a soft-spoken and well-made story of loss, hope, and seeking both comfort and peace from total strangers. It's also a story that feels quite timely despite its setting being so far back. News Of The World stands as being one of 2020's understated films with incredible acting, directing that feels on point though handled with an appropriate amount of restraint, and building up of tension. With a genre that feels a bit dated, Greengrass shows audiences that there's more story to tell with Hanks continuing to show that he's on top form as an actor, and Zengel's breakout as his co-star being a remarkable start to what appears to be a promising career.
Final Verdict: For Western fans and those who enjoy Tom Hanks, News Of The World is a brilliantly-acted and affecting Western drama.
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