The Mule

Clint Eastwood's The Mule is a step up from his film from earlier this year, The 15:17 to Paris.  But then, how could it not be?  That was one of the very worst films of 2018.  In this film (in which he stars and directs), Eastwood has a fascinating story about an octogenarian becoming an unlikely drug mule for a Mexican drug cartel.  He also has rounded up some wonderful actors to appear alongside him, including Bradley Cooper, Michael Pena, Laurence Fishburne and Dianne Wiest.  But this amazing cast is largely wasted, and the narrative is repetitive and dramatically inert.

The movie looks great, to be sure.  Eastwood's direction is as sure as ever, and the cinematography by Yves Belanger (Shut In) is splendid.  And even if these actors are given little to do in terms of character, they are giving it all in their performances.  I simply never felt anything about the story, or the people within it.  Eastwood plays Earl Stone, a man who has always put his business before his family, and is now paying for it in his old age.  His ex-wife (Wiest) has given up on him, and his daughter (played by his real-life daughter, Alison Eastwood) wants him out of her life.  Only his granddaughter (Taissa Farmiga) holds out any hope that he can still be a part of the family.  The scenes depicting the family turmoil were the moments when the film came closest to making an emotional connection with me, and still, I felt like I was being kept at a distance.

Maybe that's because the whole movie feels kind of lazy and unhurried.  Even when Earl is supposed to be at his lowest point, has a gun pointed at him, or is arguing with his ex-wife who he obviously still respects, everything just seems so curiously muted.  It doesn't help that the character of Earl comes across as a bit of enigma.  We never truly learn what he thinks about having to turn to being a drug mule in order to save his home when it is being threatened with foreclosure.  Heck, Earl doesn't even seem to realize until halfway through the movie that he is transporting drugs.  There is a scene that comes along far too late where he suddenly decides to stop his truck, and check just what is in the duffel bag that he is transporting.  He seems shocked to see the drugs inside.  And then, the movie never brings it up again after that.  The movie brings up none of the necessary ethical questions that could have given the movie some much-needed emotional depth.

Even the way Earl is drawn into the world of drug running seems forced.  He is approached by someone at his granddaughter's wedding brunch, who overhears his financial difficulties, and hands him a card with a phone number.  That's apparently all it takes in order to lead a 90-year-old man into a life of crime.  As Earl starts transporting drugs, dropping them off at a motel parking lot, we get a parallel storyline where a DEA Agent named Colin Bates (Bradley Cooper) is assigned by his boss (Fishburne) to stop the flow of drugs that is coming from Mexico into Chicago.  As Bates and his partner (Michael Pena) slowly close in on Earl, the movie doesn't come anywhere close to building tension, nor does it give Cooper or Pena any real role to play.  It keeps on cutting back to them, and we keep on waiting for these fine actors to take the reigns and create a memorable scene, but they never do, because the screenplay forgot to give them a personality for them to play off of.

The Mule is a film that is simply just a little too on the nose.  From the forced emotions that the film's climactic moments bring when Earl suddenly has a change of heart, right down to the soundtrack, everything is spelled out and cut and dry.  Eastwood's directing style is typically very laid back and realistic.  He focuses on small scenes that most filmmakers would not, and can usually get a lot of emotion or a good moment out of them.  Here, he is obviously trying, but he just never seems to have much of a handle on the material.  Everything has been well made, but there's just not a lot underneath the gloss and polish.  And when it tries to be human and powerful, it comes across as scripted dialogue, not genuine emotion. 

I truly do admire Eastwood's commitment to filmmaking, and the fact that he can knock out two movies in the same year is something very few directors can boast.  But there is just an emptiness here that I just was not expecting.  With this cast, and this story, you expect to be carried away by the emotion, and I never was. 

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