Whether some film is good or not is a very subjective question. However, there are those movies that viewers may not experience in the right way – and consider them boring and therefore bad. Every director, including Scott Cooper, has more than once found himself in a situation where some of his films did not meet the desired effect with the audience.
Good Director, Bad Movie
There is a lot of debate about which films are the best and what some movie needs to have to be considered a masterpiece of cinematography. However, if the movie is really bad, it is clear to every viewer, there is no discussion. Yet some are so bad that they are good. Scott Cooper is considered one of those directors who threw out both good and “bad” films. Still, one has to wonder if these bad film achievements are really bad or maybe misunderstood. Director Scott Cooper is also well-known for making films of various genres. In his biography, you will find almost everything – from horror stories, through drama and epoch, to action and true stories. However, according to some reviews, his worst 3 movies are Out of the Furnace (2013), Black Mass (2015), and Hostiles (2017).
Black Mass (2015)
Although pompously the best, the film that follows the true story of the Boston Underworld did not meet with a super-positive response from the audience. According to reviews of this movie directed by Scott Cooper Miami Beach filmmaker, viewers and the rest of the audience did not accept this movie for what it really was. Perhaps this is because we see Johnny Depp as a Boston mobster who is unrecognizable to us and we cannot link him to Captain Jack Sparrow – while some claim that many events have been arranged and simplified in the movie. Still, we have to admit that the story is extremely complex and interesting, and the narrative itself is, therefore, more concise and fluid.
Out of the Furnace (2013)
The social thriller drama is a Scott Cooper’s project, which is supported by a large production team – among others, it is worth mentioning names such as Leonardo DiCaprio and Ridley Scott. The movie is actually very layered, although it starts from the story of the fate of a member of the low working class. However, later, the director slowly develops the story, introducing us to several important characters whose life paths will inevitably cross. The audience’s biggest complaint about this movie is the slow action and introduction to the story – which they claim does not have enough dynamics to keep the viewer pinned to the screen. However, what is more than obvious is the fact that the director takes care of his characters. It gives them the required width and everything makes them look complex enough.
Hostiles (2017)
Although Westerns have not been so successful at the box office or award ceremonies for a long time – Cooper decided to take this step and showed that he wants to be an exception to this trend. This film, however, doesn’t t seem to lack political relevance, nor strong roles. Besides Christian Bale, in this movie, we can also see Rosamund Pike, Wes Studi, and Jesse Plemons. The story follows Captain Joe Blocker, a hardened fighter against the Indians, who is given the task of escorting the elderly chief of Cheyenne, the Yellow Falcon, to Montana – the land of bears – after many years in prison. All of this would have been normal if Joe Blocker and Yellow Falcon had not been enemies for many years. What may be a drawback to this film is the somewhat empty script, whose focus is mainly on American soldiers. The Indians are given very little space in the film, as they travel together throughout the entire movie. On the other hand, this lack of script was very skillfully compensated with the fantastic photographs of the landscape of Masanobu Takanayagi – and the combination of depressing and powerful music by Max Richter.
