Clint Eastwood seldom disappoints. Yet I went into his latest film, The Mule, with low expectations. I just didn't see how a film about an octogenarian drug mule could hold my interest. I was pleasantly surprised. Eastwood does not show any signs of tiring at the age of eighty-eight. Like many of his past endeavors, Eastwood directs while taking the starring role. The story, written by Nick Schenk is based on a New York Times Magazine article by Sam Dolnick about an actual case out of the Eastern District of Michigan.
Earl Stone (Eastwood) has pissed his life away trying to be the life of the party. He was once at the top of his game as a horticulturalist specializing in rare day lilies. He was quick to buy a round for the bar. The zeal and attention he gave his friends covered an inadequacy he felt at home, where his family tired of him forgetting birthdays and anniversaries. His business is destroyed by his inability to adapt to the internet age, leaving him in foreclosure with nowhere to go. When he attends the wedding rehearsal for his granddaughter (Taissa Farmiga), he is approached by a young man to take work as a driver. Stone suspects he is driving narcotics, but tries to remain blissfully ignorant, in spite of the large sums of money he is being paid for the deliveries.
Special Agent Bates (Bradley Cooper) is an up-and-coming DEA Agent. There is quite a bit of pressure from his superiors to pull together a major drug investigation. Bates and his partner (Michael Pena) recruit a local drug lord to work as an informant. The informant is providing information on the cartel shipments that Stone is delivering. The agents are frustrated by the inconsistent and erratic schedule that Stone keeps. The cartel is equally frustrated. They like to run a tight ship with carefully designed routes. The deliveries become a game of cat-and-mouse as Stone becomes a target of both the DEA and the drug cartel. His life hangs in the balance, regardless of the outcome.
After watching the film, I did some quick reading on the film and the inspiration for the film. One of the first articles I read was from the Atlanta Journal Constitution which read like a lazy, social justice warrior tirade. Other reviews took a deeper look at the underlying material and inspiration. There are quite a few stereotypes and racist remarks in this film. It is contextual. It is part of the character development of the lead character. He is from a different age. And yes, I have heard people that age speak the same way. There is a parallel that articles like this miss. The character loses his livelihood and finds himself working as a drug mule due to his inability to adapt to changing times. He doesn't like technology. But more importantly, he is resistant to change. I thought the contextual aspects of his character were done in a way to create some humor out of a situation we have probably all witnessed with elderly people who don't quite understand the dynamics of acceptable speech. I thought the writing crafted an interesting story with a gentle narrative arc that didn't dwell too long tying the story together at the end. It felt tightly rendered, although a bit of the character reconciliation near the end seemed a bit too tidy.
What can you ask for in a cast that The Mule doesn't deliver? Bradley Cooper has been nominated for four Oscars and is well overdue. Eastwood has four Oscars sitting in his trophy cabinet somewhere collecting dust. Diane Wiest, who plays Eastwood's estranged wife in the film owns two Oscars. Laurence Fishburne and Andy Garcia both have Oscar nominations. The rest of the cast have a sundry assortment of hardware from other awards shows. This is an A-List cast. They help bring an otherwise unlikely, but colorless story to life. I was intrigued by the characters and performances and enjoyed watching the events unfold. While the pacing seemed slow during the first half of the film, thing picked up nicely. The performances helped keep things interesting even when the story was otherwise a bit slow.
The Mule is rated R by the MPAA. The rating seems a bit strict, but appears to be tied to language and sexuality. There are a few scenes where the elderly protagonist indulges himself with female companionship, although most of it is suggested. There is only one scene where things are taken to the next level with Stone in a bedroom with two women. When one of the women removes her shirt, Stone says "I think I need my cardiologist." It was as much humorous as it was sensual. It is done with discretion rather than going for gratuitous sensuality. I think this film would be fine for younger audiences. I'll go with teens or above. The film has a run time of one hour, 56 minutes.
The Mule was better than I anticipated. I like Eastwood (and most of the cast, for that matter) and was glad to see that this film was not a waste of my time and money. It did not glorify drug-running. It humanized the protagonist without creating a sense of miscarried justice. The character takes responsibility for his actions (unlike the character the story is based upon). The film held my attention. While slow at times, I felt connected to the characters, as unlikely as that seems. That is what I expect out of a film, and in this case, it delivered. 7.5/10.
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