Director: John Hillcoat
Written by: Nick Cave
Starring: Guy Pearce, Ray Winstone, Danny Huston, John Hurt, David Wenham, Emily Watson
Country: Australia
Running Time: 104
Year: 2005
BBFC Certificate: 18
The Western has enjoyed something of a revival these past 20 years. Not quite enough of one to be noticed in the midst of the comic book takeover, but still there was a stunning range of oaters by 2010, from the solid populist remakes of 3:10 to Yuma and The Magnificent Seven to the Coen Brothers’ mini-masterpiece re-interpretation of True Grit. Perhaps The Proposition was the flag-bearer of this run. John Hillcoat’s earthy film might be set in Australia, but between brutal colonisation, oppressed natives and vicious outlaws, it is a pure Western.
It has a surprising sentimental streak and the plotting is broad, almost naïve, yet lyrical. Its characters suffer, and have already suffered, such that they are lost in a cycle of violence they cannot escape. Nick Cave’s screenplay, suitably grotty and poetic in equal measure, in John Hillcoat’s hands feels like Cormac McCarthy crossed with John Ford.
It’s an angry film, with a proud conscience it beats home with some serious brutality, sometimes seen, sometimes implied. Ray Winstone, stripped of his usual bluster, rises to the challenge of possibly his most complicated role, the one thus far for which he should be celebrated the most. His Captain Stanley is the thin line between fragile civilisation (represented by his dignified wife, played by a marvellous Emily Watson) and the existential violence of Guy Pearce’s outlaw family.
It is true to observe though that Mortimer’s role is more a metaphor; a trophy from the old world to be protected at all costs. The film has a troubling scene towards the end that is at least logical and thought-provoking. Necessary? Harder to say. Another scene early on sees Pearce’s younger brother flogged, an upsetting moment but in it we can read the motives of multiple characters and of the film itself.
Mortimer’s character is one of many broad strokes, but the cast is phenomenal anyway. Guy Pearce is a quiet, stoic presence and he throws himself into the performance to wring out all possibility. His elder brother is played by Danny Huston. An entertaining role with a slightly dodgy accent, Huston is like Brando’s enigmatic General in Apocalypse Now. Pearce, the “errand boy” and reluctant would-be assassin. Along the way we meet the late John Hurt who seems to exist only to wax lyrical, literally. He, of course, is wonderful. And in Hurt we find the film: naively exaggerated, over-delivered, but brilliantly written and thought provoking, leaving us with a strong sense of an important time. Emotional enough too, that we should mourn these lost characters and the new world they are already messing up.
VIDEO
Always a handsome film, 4k has given The Proposition a terrible beauty. As befitting the harsh story, its image is both bleached and rich with detail, detail which lives in the contrasts. The shifting shades of reds and greys in the sandy, dusty landscape stand out against the sharp whites and blues of the sky. Clothing, faces, dirt, sweat and blood are darker than expected, but it’s a wonderful, strong effect. Focus shifts in what is a lively, tangible film and Benoît Delhomme’s cinematography is a good portion of the film’s identity. Faces can be soft, while objects have a dirty gleam and, let’s not forget the flies. UHD always benefits small, rapid movement in film, like rain and snow. There’s little such moisture here, but the flies are numerous.
AUDIO
Nick Cave provided music as well as words and his theme captures the complicated morals of the film. The 5.1 soundtrack however, is inconsistent. Sometimes dialogue seems too low in the mix, sometimes too high. Still, environmental detail can be extraordinary; a quiet moment as Winstone helps Mortimer prepare an important meal is accentuated by detail such as her heavy evening gown shifting.
EXTRAS
This is an excellent treatment by the BFI of an important film. There’s a good mix here of substantial archive features, but the gem is the new interview with Hillcoat and Cave. Hillcoat also contributes to a wonderful, substantial booklet.
- Audio commentary with John Hillcoat and Nick Cave (2006)
- Newly recorded audio commentary by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson
- John Hillcoat and Nick Cave in Conversation (2021, 53 mins): a newly recorded conversation between director John Hillcoat and screenwriter Nick Cave as they look back on The Proposition
- The Making of The Proposition (2005, 27 mins): behind-the-scenes documentary
- Inside The Proposition (2005, 43 mins): a series of featurettes looking at the film’s pre-production
- Shooting The Proposition (2005, 24 mins): featurettes on the production and the challenges faced during filming
- B-roll footage (2005, 20 mins): behind-the-scenes footage shot during the filming of The Proposition
- Interview with Guy Pearce (2006, 14 mins): the actor on his approach to the role of Charlie Burns
- Interview with Danny Huston (2006, 8 mins): the actor recalls his work on the film
- Stills galleries
- Original theatrical and teaser trailers
- 2022 trailer
