Based on a true story, Dead Man’s Wire sees Gus Van Sant use a talented cast and 70s aesthetics to tell a timely, but unfocused story.
What’s so exciting about Gus Van Sant is that you never know what you’re going to get with him. You could get a queer Shakespeare retelling, an Oscar-baity biopic, or a terrible remake of a horror classic. For his first feature film in eight years, Van Sant gives us another true story, but one with a lot more panache.
Dead Man’s Wire focuses on Tony Kiritsis (Bill Skarsgård), a frustrated real-estate developer who feels like he’s been slighted by Meridian Mortgage. In order to showcase that anger, he kidnaps a mortgage company executive (Dacre Montgomery) and takes him to his apartment with a wired shotgun that will go off if anyone gets in his way. His terms for releasing his captive? His debt relieved the 5 million dollars he would’ve gotten from his deal, immunity, and most importantly: an apology from the company.
Times gone by.
Photo Credit: Row K Entertainment
Skarsgård and Montgomery shine in their roles. Skarsgård hams up his portrayal, but instead of going full insane, he adds some vulnerability behind those crazy eyes. He loves to dance, he’s beer buddies with some of the cops trying to arrest him, and he wants justice for the bad guys. In the complete opposite direction, Montgomery’s quietness differs from the typical spoiled son of an executive and brings a nice balance to the chaos.
The film drips with style, and everything from the music to the clothes to the locations makes it feel like it’s straight out of a Sidney Lumet picture. Van Sant quickly cuts to news-style shots of the events, which additionally gives it a documentary feel. There are interviews with random people cheering on Tony for “taking on the man,” and others, like his brother and neighbors, saying he was always a nice, quiet guy.
With Luigi Manigione still fresh in everyone’s mind, Dead Man’s Wire seems to be Van Sant’s take on a man trying to fight a predatory system. And while that’s very welcome, the screenplay leaves a lot to be desired. While this is based on a true story, it doesn’t know what it wants to focus on. The relationship between Tony and his captive, the police response, and the news coverage of the event all feel half-baked, leading to a sluggish narrative that doesn’t really go anywhere.
The bottom line.
Dead Man’s Wire may have its flaws, but Van Sant’s filmmaking and Skarsgård’s campy acting make it mostly entertaining. But it’s hard not to think about its potential and how crazier it could have gone.
Dead Man’s Wire is now playing in select theaters. Watch the trailer here.
Images courtesy of Row K Entertainment. Read more articles by Yasmin Kleinbart here.
REVIEW RATING
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Dead Man's Wire - 6/10
6/10
