Review: Killers of the Flower Moon

Killers of the Flower Moon is an unusual project for Martin Scorsese a true crime western set in Oklahoma. Stars Scorsese favourites Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro, with a career-making role from Lily Gladstone (Reservation Dogs).The biggest - certainly the longest - movie of the year comes from the man still considered to be America's greatest living director, Martin Scorsese. It's called Killers of the Flower Moon.Scorsese comes from the great tradition of classic movies and classic movie-makers.He was never a Hollywood director as such - he described himself as an "in spite of Hollywood director" - but he was steeped in the films of David Lean, Federico Fellini, Kubrick and Kurosawa. And the great westerns.Which is why it's only right that this most urban of American film-makers should finally turn to making his own Western.When Scorsese was asked why make something as risky as Killers of the Flower Moon, he said "At my age why wouldn't I take a risk?"And the risk entailed reshaping what could have been a straightforward whodunit. As Marty says, it's more a "who didn't do it."Killers of the Flower Moon opens on Ernest Burkhart - Leonardo DiCaprio - returning home from World War I. Home being Oklahoma where his uncle William Hale - Robert de Niro - has a job offer for him.Hale is already a successful rancher - the self-styled "King of Oklahoma" - when the territory suddenly strikes it rich. And the luckiest people in the state are the owners of the land - the Osage tribe. Suddenly oil wells are springing up all over the territory, all owned by the Osage.Oil, like gold, is a signal for chancers and opportunists from all over the country to try their luck - including Ernest, of course. With no particular skills he takes a job as a driver for hire, and one of the people he drives is a wealthy Osage woman called Mollie.As his uncle says, that's a short cut to wealth - marry an Osage heiress. All over the territory, white men are marrying Osage women, because that way they get their hands on all that money in the fullness of time.But for some - in fact for more than some - "the fullness of time" is a long time to wait for an impatient man. Osage people start dying for various reasons - accidents, suicides, illnesses - and no-one seems to be investigating these killings. They're tragedies, shrugs Hale, but that's what happens when people find themselves with more money than they can handle…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details