“The Weight,” a Great Depression-era wilderness heist thriller, attempts to recapture the spirit of 1970s survival movies…but doesn’t quite stick the landing. The story puts the protagonist, Samuel Murphy (Ethan Hawke), in an ethically challenging situation. Murphy is a recently widowed, MacGyver-like mechanic and father struggling to provide for his young daughter, Penny (Avery Perry). While searching for a new place to live, Murphy and his daughter are cornered by three men. When one gets too close to Penny, Murphy attacks them, only to discover one of them is an undercover cop.
Penny is sent to a home, and Murphy gets placed at a labor camp where he can work time off his sentence building a road. Warden J.J. Clancy (Russell Crowe) enjoys toying with the men by giving them seemingly impossible tasks with the bait of a day off. Murphy proves his ingenuity by leading the men in moving a boulder off a path in a sequence reminiscent of the road-finishing scene in “Cool Hand Luke” (1967).
While this is taking place, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt has called all Federal Reserve mines to surrender their gold to the Federal Reserve Bank. Clancy learns Murphy’s daughter will be put in the foster system in a month if Murphy does not come to claim her, and Murphy’s sentence is not up until months later. Clancy takes advantage of Murphy’s predicament and tasks him with assembling three men he trusts to illegally carry gold from a friend’s mine on a five-day trek across the Oregon wilderness to a drop point before marshals come to claim the gold. If they succeed, Clancy will sign their release papers immediately. If they fail, death.
Driven by desperation to have his daughter back, Murphy accepts the terms and picks his crew. Up until this point, the movie had me hooked, was well paced, and proposed interesting ethical dilemmas. And then, it started to drag. “The Weight” definitely has moments of dramatic scenes and difficult obstacles. However, its balance of heightened moments and quiet introspection was off, favoring introspection. Conflicts between characters become obvious, and the final resolution was too convenient.
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Nevertheless, the movie captures one concept well that is getting lost in some contemporary circles: the inherent dignity present in all of us, even the incarcerated.
The inherent dignity in the incarcerated
The four prisoners hauling gold are treated like the scum of the Earth despite only committing minor offenses, either crimes of desperation or resisting arrest. This makes them perfect candidates for the mission, but lowers the stakes because it is not believable that they will try to overpower their armed guards unless defending their lives.
Nevertheless, the conversations and actions of the prisoners remind the audience that they still have worth and should have the chance to be rehabilitated into society.
Catholic teaching attests to the state’s ability to inflict penalties with respect to the gravity of a person’s crime to preserve the common good, but also emphasizes the importance of correcting the offender (Catechism of the Catholic Church 2266). A prison sentence does not grant authorities complete permission to treat a prisoner however they wish. The inmate is still a person, and their dignity as a person who is created in the image and likeness of God is never lost. It is also incumbent on authorities to act ethically and show the incarcerated a better path.
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Like all of us who sin, inmates can be reconciled with God. His mercy is available to anyone willing to accept it, no matter how grave their sin. Even if someone must pay their debt to society by serving a life sentence, God’s mercy is still at hand.
Where it succeeded
“The Weight” was a decent first feature film outing by director Padraic McKinley. With previous experience in producing, editing and television directing, you can tell McKinley appreciates the craft.
Although much of the movie dragged, the heightened scenes were classically cinematic. One notable scene depicts two characters attacking another during a thunderstorm, and action is shown only when lightning strikes. Another gripping scene shows Murphy in the middle of a wobbly bridge, catching and throwing one heavy gold bar at a time so the group can safely pass.
“The Weight” also showcased the dichotomy of nature’s beauty and cruelty. The landscape shots of Bavaria posing as Oregon were absolutely beautiful, and the unforgiving elements were terrifying.
Ethan Hawke deserves praise for his performance. He quite literally carried the emotional weight of the movie on his back.
Where it fell short
Ultimately, the plot was boring, predictable, and had some holes. There were many moments where you thought something was going to happen, and then the characters talked about something unrelated.
Except for Ethan Hawke’s Murphy, every character felt one-dimensional. We do learn their backstories, but mostly through exposition and not earned moments. The group is joined by Anna (Julia Jones), a Native American and Depression-era Wonder Woman. Her involvement strengthened the group dynamic, but her reasons for joining were weak at best. Russell Crowe also brought a powerful performance, but his character’s overall involvement was unrealized.
Final Thoughts
The only reason I would watch “The Weight” again is to see Ethan Hawke’s masterful performance. However, he has many masterful performances, so I could quench that thirst by watching other Ethan Hawke films.
The same could be said for the type of wilderness adventure movies “The Weight” is paying homage to throughout the film. You definitely feel vibes of “Deliverance” (1972) and “Sorcerer” (1977), but “The Weight” does not quite live up to its predecessors.
