Newton Boys, The (1998)

reviewed by
Nathaniel R. Atcheson


The Newton Boys (1998)

Director:  Richard Linklater Cast:  Matthew McConaughey, Skeet Ulrich, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D'Onofrio, Julianna Margulies, Dwight Yokam, Gail Gronauer Screenplay:  Richard Linklater, Claude Stanush, Clark Lee Walker Producers:  Anne Walker-McBay Runtime:  122 min. US Distribution:  Twentieth Century Fox Rated PG-13:  violence, language

By Nathaniel R. Atcheson (nate@pyramid.net)

It must have been nice to live around 1920, when one could stumble into a bank and belligerently order the clerks to hand over all the money, and then stumble back out on to the street and mosey back to the horse, and then get away, having "not been seen." The Newton brothers were smarter than this, but their tactics are frequently as conspicuous. Apparently it didn't matter, because they are the most successful bank robbers in American history.

And their story makes a darn good movie. The Newton Boys is a pleasant surprise: I expected something far less than this entertaining, well-acted, and thoughtful film.

Matthew McConaughey has the largest role as Willis Newton, the brother who engineers most of the bank robberies. At first, his accomplices are his two younger brothers, Joe (Skeet Ulrich) and Jess (Ethan Hawke), and Brentwood Glasscock (Dwight Yokam), the bomb expert. Later, their brother Dock (Vincent D'Onofrio) gets out of jail and catches up with them.

Willis masterminds each robbery, and is responsible for upping the stakes as time goes on. They start off small, blowing up safes in the middle of the night and taking the money. Soon, they move up to breaking into two banks simultaneously. Not long after this, they are going to the bigger cities and taking a lot more money. Willis justifies his actions by saying, "It's just one thief stealing from another," and the good thing is we believe him (at least a little bit).

Bank robbery is a serious thing, but I liked the light tone that director Richard Linklater has taken with this film. The bank robberies are simultaneously suspenseful and funny; they are also well-filmed, and enhanced by an appropriate musical score. The sets are authentic, and certainly not inexpensive: huge blocks of city streets from this time period have been constructed for the film, and the result is a picture that is visually flawless.

But what makes this such an enjoyable film are the characters, and the actors who portray them. McConaughey adds one more bit of proof that he can hold his own as a leading man; he manages to make Willis the crazed, eccentric man that he is, while still demanding our like and sympathy. And later, when he meets his love, Louise Brown (Julianna Margulies), we truly believe that he cares for her. Surprisingly, this is one of the best-written romances I've seen in a while, for the female character is fleshed-out, and Margulies plays her part well.

The rest of the cast is made up of a group of talented young actors who are all making names for themselves. Hawke, who plays the most jovial (and most volatile) of the brothers, is perhaps the most entertaining to watch. Ulrich is quiet and reserved as Joe, and he does a good job adding dimension to his character. D'Onofrio, who has been playing small parts for a while, is good here, though not given a lot of screen time.

Don't leave when the credits begin: interviews with the real Willis and Joe Newton role through the credits. After seeing the film, it's vastly entertaining to watch these old men talk about what they did so many years ago (and Willis is still justifying the robberies). And it also serves to show how well McConaughey and Ulrich play their roles.

The Newton Boys is a charming, entertaining film. Its success lies in its simplicity, and I don't understand why all film makers can't go by this easy set of guidelines: make the characters round and interesting, use talented actors, treat the material with respect, and everything else will usually fall into place.

*** out of ****
(7/10, B)

Visit FILM PSYCHOSIS at http://www.pyramid.net/natesmovies
           Nathaniel R. Atcheson

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