Lord of the Rings star Viggo Mortensen has made a stunning Western that you can now stream on Amazon Prime. He gives the genre a thrilling twist.
Last year, the Western genre in cinemas was largely taken up by reports on Kevin Costner’s Horizon flop. The Western gem The Dead Don’t Hurt flew under the radar with just 35,000 viewers (according to Blickpunkt Film) in German cinemas. Unfairly so, as you can now find out on Amazon Prime*.
This is what the western The Dead Don’t Hurt on Amazon is about.
In 1860, French-Canadian Vivienne Le Coudy (Vicky Krieps) and Danish immigrant Holger Olsen (Viggo Mortensen) venture a new beginning on a small piece of land in northern Nevada. The only ones to disturb the idyll are the corrupt landowner Alfred Jeffries (Garret Dillahunt) and his alcoholic son Weston (Solly McLeod) in the nearby town of Elk Flats. It is only when the American Civil War breaks out and Hoger leaves home to fight at the front that the neighbors become a serious problem for Vivienne.
Watch the trailer for the Western The Dead Don’t Hurt here
Reveling in visually stunning landscape shots, The Dead Don’t Hurt takes you by the hand as a Western. On the way into the wilderness, the difficult conditions of new settlers, which the series 1883 recently portrayed so well, are repeatedly evoked. With powerful landowners and gunfights, the film brings together many elements of a classic Western. Nevertheless, director Viggo Mortensen was obviously not interested in just making the umpteenth remake of a well-known story.
Amazon newcomer The Dead Don’t Hurt breaks new ground as a Western
In his second directorial effort after Falling, Lord of the Rings star Viggo Mortensen pays tribute to the western influences of earlier representatives, but also pushes his film, like a gently spurred horse, in more unusual directions. Not only does he bring his Aragorn sword into dream sequences of The Dead Don’t Hurt, he also gives the deprivations of his female protagonist a lot of space and explores the feelings of the emancipated woman for her taciturn partner in a nuanced way – as a love drama in a tough Western setting.
The raw chemistry between Krieps and Mortensen is convincingly down-to-earth and played gorgeously by both stars, although the director didn’t even want to take on his own leading role himself. The calm approach to the staging takes nothing away from the tension, but gives the western a lived-in atmosphere, underpinned by captivating everyday details. (How does a father get his young son on a horse when he is already sitting on it himself? Trust me, you’ll want to witness this trick.)
Visually and emotionally appealing, The Dead Don’t Hurt is a Western of the more unusual kind, one that continues to resonate long after it ends. If you missed it in the theater, you should definitely catch up on Amazon Prime now.
Podcast: 8 ingenious Westerns that are not only worthwhile for Yellowstone fans
Whether thanks to hit series like Yellowstone and 1883 or Tarantino masterpieces like Django Unchained: the Western genre is experiencing a popularity it hasn’t seen in a long time. For all fans, we’ve picked out the best Westerns you can stream right now.
Among the 8 featured Western highlights on Netflix, Amazon, Disney+ and MUBI, you will find both absolute classics and lesser-known insider tips. There is something for every genre fan here: our recommendations cover a full 55 years of Western history between 1964 and 2019.
The link to the Amazon offer is a so-called affiliate link. If you make a purchase via this link, we will receive a commission.
