Review: The Harder They Fall

The Nat Love Gang.

The Harder They Fall is a total blast: bloody, stylistic, and energetic.

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We ain’t no nincompoop. — Regina King

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Writer-director Jeymes Samuel’s dazzling Western is also backed by a phenomenal cast (Jonathan Majors, Idris Elba, Zazie Beetz, Regina King, Delroy Lindo, Lakeith Stanfield, RJ Cyler, Danielle Deadwyler, and Edi Gathegi). Samuel's Revisionist Western is a shoot-them-up picture from start to finish. You will have a lot of fun! The Harder They Fall is a great directorial debut from Samuel, offering an exciting Western extravaganza with an all-Black cast. In this new Western adventure, we meet real-life cowboys (Nat Love, Rufus Buck, Stagecoach Mary, Bass Reeves, Cherokee Bill, James Beckwourth, and Bill Pickett), but the story in this film is fictionalized. Without having to worry about historical inaccuracies, Samuel was able to craft the picture the way he wanted to. Our movie follows Nat Love (an excellent Majors), an outlaw who discovers his enemy, Rufus Buck (a strong Elba), has escaped from prison. Wanting to avenge the death of his parents, who died at the hands of Buck, Love decides to reunite his old gang.

The Rufus Buck Gang.

Majors has been on my radar ever since I saw his captivating performance in The Last Black Man in San Francisco (2019). Whether it's Atticus Freeman (Lovecraft Country, 2020) or He Who Remains (Loki, 2021), Majors always brings his A-game — showing off those acting chops. It was also great to see Majors as a leading actor for this movie. With Love's gang, we have Stagecoach Mary (a fantastic Beetz), Bass Reeves (a never better Lindo), James Beckwourth (a hot-handed Cyler), Bill Pickett (a smooth Gathegi), and Cuffee (a wonderful Deadwyler). On the flipside, with Buck's gang, we have Trudy Smith (a fierce King) and Cherokee Bill (a sly Stanfield). On top of there being strong acting, Samuel also layers this Western with stylized violence and an energetic score (original music by Jay-Z). The action set pieces are wild, exploding with fun and mayhem throughout. The Hard They Fall is one of this year's most exciting pictures and, in the end, will also go down as a great Western too. Go watch it.

Actors Jonathan Majors and Zazie Beetz.

The Harder They Fall is rated R (Restricted) Strong Violence | Language.

Stream it now on Netflix.

Directed by Jeymes Samuel

Starring Jonathan Majors, Idris Elba, Zazie Beetz, Regina King, Delroy Lindo, Lakeith Stanfield, RJ Cyler, Danielle Deadwyler, Edi Gathegi, Deon Cole, and Damon Wayans Jr.