Let him go6/16/2023 ![]() While admiring the sunset on a ridge and considering the daunting task ahead, the beautiful cinematography by Canuck Guy Godfree firmly places Let Him Go in the western tradition. They epitomize the all-American wholesomeness of the late 1950s. They share coffee cake during the ride and stop at greasy spoons. Lane and Costner, after all, previously played Superman’s parents. They’ve had this argument before.ĭespite the flickers of tension, the Blackledges’ vigilante road trip offers moments of warmth. Margaret, the strong silent type, simply turns a blind eye. George, for example, quivers for a drink and needs nip for the ride. Shades of the difficult years that passed between James’s death and Jimmy’s disappearance arise. ![]() ![]() Beset with a new loss after years of grief, they’re fighting for the family they once had. Margaret and George are the kind of rugged westerners who fight like they have nothing to lose. The film has a unique wholesomeness that fuels its journey towards inevitable violence. Let Him Go charts an unconventional western as the Blackledges traverse America in search of their grandson. “Let him go, let him go / Can’t hold it back anymore…” It’s canned soup if he stays behind or Bundt cake if she rides with her. Movies are movies, however, and Margaret gives him a taste of life without her. They have no claim to the boy unless Lorna wants them to in his life. He advises Margaret simply to cherish the time she had with Jimmy and move on. The salty former sheriff abides by the laws of the land and another man’s home. Margaret’s husband, George ( Kevin Costner), however, is a more traditional gunslinger. When she witnesses Donnie abuse both Lorna and Jimmy in the street, and then learns that they skipped town a day later, she toughens up like Ashley Judd en route to a Mardi Gras parade. Imagine Margaret’s disappointment, then, when Lorna remarries a shady character named Donnie (Will Brittain). Her son’s namesake is the last connection to the boy she raised. Margaret is actually in the midst of cradling her grandson when she learns of James’s death. James leaves behind his widow Lorna (Kayli Carter) and their son Jimmy. Lane’s sweet little grandma, Margaret Blackledge, is distraught when her son James dies in a horsing accident. “Be the good girl you always have to be…” There’s actually something extra badass about a vigilante grandma who packs a Bundt cake with her pistol. Let Him Go smartly tailors the character to Lane’s age and warmth. However, Lane isn’t quite as natural a fit to play the hardened vigilante, but her versatility has an edge. Offering perfectly decent turns in thrillers like Fierce People, Untraceable and Killshot, Lane looked ready to follow Judd’s run of flicks like Double Jeopardy, Kiss the Girls, and High Crimes. Let Him Go recalls that period in the 2000s when Diane Lane briefly encroached on Ashley Judd’s turf.
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