The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

Starring Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sam Rockwell, and Sam Shepard.  Cinematography by Roger Deakins.  Editing by Curtiss Clayton and Dylan Tichenor. Produced by Jules Daly, Dede Gardner, Brad Pitt, Ridley Scott, and David Valdes.  Written and Directed by Andrew Dominik.

Years of living on the other side of the law have left Jesse James (played by Brad Pitt) detached, paranoid, and dangerous. After a successful twelve year crime spree his infamous James Gang is preparing for one final robbery. With only his brother Frank (played by Sam Shepard) remaining, James needs to recruit men from the local town.

Among them is Robert Ford (played by Casey Affleck), a young man who has idolized the celebrity criminal his entire life. The robbery is a success and Ford is invited to stay in the fractured gang.  Over the next few months James and Ford develop a strange and intense relationship, one driven by fear and obsession, which ultimately leads to the titular assassination.

Warner Bros. and Plan B Entertainment (Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston’s production company) purchased the rights to Ron Hansen’s novel The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford in March of 2004 and hired Australian filmmaker Andrew Dominik to write and direct the adaptation.  Filming began in August of 2005 and ran for nearly four months.  Now “in the can”, the film would spend the better part of the next two years being edited and re-edited before finally seeing its release date in September of 2007.

Dominik’s first cut of the film was a daunting four and a half hours long, which was eventually trimmed to just over three.  He has cited the dark and introspective works of cinema auteur Terrence Malick as his inspiration for the project. Unfortunately, the studio was hoping for something a bit more action driven and thus the stand-off began. 

The project would go through many phases and iterations over the next months.  At one point Pitt and producer Ridley Scott, along with editors Dylan Tichenor and Michael Kahn, put together their own cut of the film, but when it did not perform well with test audiences they backed off and supported Dominik’s version. Ultimately Warners agreed.

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford premiered at the 2007 Venice Film Festival where it was nominated for a Golden Lion. Pitt was also awarded a Volpi Cup for his amazing performance as Jesse James.  With award circuit hype building, and a genuine Hollywood superstar in a principle role, one would reasonably expect a decent box office run, but the film never seemed to pick up any momentum in theaters.

It did, however, harvest an impressive amount of critical acclaim and was listed on many prominent “top ten” lists of 2007.  It also earned Casey Affleck a great deal of attention and well deserved praise in his role as “The Coward” Robert Ford.

Budget: $30,000,000

Total US Gross: $3,909,149

Genre: Western

Runtime: 160 Minutes

US Release Date: 9/21/07

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Awards:
Academy Awards: 
Nominated for best cinematography and supporting actor. 

Golden Globes: 
Nominated for best supporting actor.

Tagline: Beyond The Myth Lies America’s Greatest Betrayal.

Quote: “I've been a nobody all my life. I was the baby… I was the one they made promises to that they never kept.  And ever since I can recall it, Jesse James has been as big as a tree.  I'm prepared for this, Jim. And I'm going to accomplish it.  I know I won't get but this one opportunity and you can bet your life I'm not going to spoil it.”