Cry Macho

Cry Macho
Starring Clint Eastwood, Dwight Yoakam, Eduardo Minett, Natalia Travern
Directed by Clint Eastwood

In a world where being old is a sign of weakness and there's hardly any jobs out there for people over fifty (except, for some odd reason, in politics), there's always been a struggle between the energy of youth and the age of wisdom. In Hollywood, once you hit the big 3-0, it's almost a retirement age where hardly anyone will hire you for projects because the majority of films tend to cater to the younger audiences who'd rather see attractive younger actors than seasoned, professional older actors. So it's an amazing feat that Clint Eastwood isn't still just acting, but directing as well, as he's about to turn 92 next May - that's practically a fossil in Hollywood terms. Yet Eastwood has still been churning out films that he's both starred and directed in, moving along at a pace someone sixty years younger, and while there's some of his recent catalogue that's rather bland ("The 15:17 to Paris"), there's others that are reminiscent of his career and that showcases his talent both in front of and behind the camera ("The Mule"). "Cry Macho" - his most recent outing - falls somewhere in-between.

In 1980, Mike Milo (Clint Eastwood) is a washed-up former rodeo star who left the limelight after a back injury and drunken behavior. He's hired by his former boss Howard Polk (Dwight Yoakam) to head to Mexico to rescue his teenage son Rafo (Eduardo Minett), who's being abused by his mother. Mike agrees because he owes a dept to Howard, and when he arrives in Mexico he learns from Rafo's mother that he's now a drunken gambler who's involved in cockfighting, and she doesn't have much to do with him anymore - if he can find him, he can take him. Mike manages to track down Rafo, but his mother reneges and sends her bodyguard after them. On the road, Mike learns that Rafo (who's brought his prize-winning rooster) named his rooster Macho because he firmly believes in the old ways of men being macho and strong. While traveling they stop at a small Mexican town where they're taken in by restaurant owner Marta (Natalie Travern), who shows signs of affection for Mike. As they spend more time in the town, Mike teaches Rafo how to ride a horse, and helps the neighborhood ranchhand tend to his ill livestock, as well as grow closer to Marta and her grandchildren, while Mike and Rafo also grow closer and bond over their lives. Yet Howard wants Rafo back, and Rafo is ready to experience the life of an American cowboy, so they hit the road again still being pursued by Rafo's mother's bodyguard in hopes of making it to the border to start a new life - while Mike struggles with the new life that's seemingly beginning for him in Mexico.

Lately Clint Eastwood has taken the path of the pseudo-autobiographical film with movies like "The Mule," "The 15:17 to Paris," "Sully," and "Richard Jewell" that center on real-life characters and their equally real-life events. "Cry Macho" isn't a real-life story but based off a 1975 novel by N. Richard Nash, whose screenplay has sat on the back burner for decades (Arnold Schwarzenegger was even at one time picked to star as Milo), but this fits within Eastwood's wheelhouse: a western thriller involving cops, thugs, and hard knock lives. Yet none of the excitement really exists in this film, as there's never a sense of real dread or high stakes throughout Mike and Rafo's adventure - it's very safe, and you know the ultimate conclusion even without spoilers because it's practically written in the sun-drenched Mexican sand.

Still the film is heightened by the committed performances of the cast, particularly Eastwood and his young ward Eduardo Minett. Their relationship starts off rocky as Rafo is wary of Mike - and everyone for that matter - but the two slowly warm up to one another during their journey. Mike doesn't much care for Rafo's rooster, but slowly grows a fondness for the animal, and Rafo at first is headstrong in his determination to be a true American cowboy that shows no emotions and who's always tough and strong, until Mike teaches him that the whole "macho" motif is worn out and it's important to be an all-encompassing person. This relationship goes on the traditional path of strangers turned friends turned trusting companions turned wariness turned trusting in the traditional way, but at least it's somewhat enjoyable.

The film's middle seems to turn the film into a sort-of cat-and-mouse game into a romantic subplot featuring Mike and Marta, as Mike and Rafo spend some quality time in a small town while getting their car fixed. Natalia Travern truly shines as Marta, a kind-hearted grandmother who's lost her husband and daughter and now raises her granddaughters by herself, as she takes a liking to Mike and he reciprocates the feelings, despite knowing they'll eventually have to leave to get Rafo back to America. Still, it's a sweet little speed bump for the adventurers as they learn more about life in the town than they would've on the open road.

Still, this doesn't deter from the fact that the film, as a whole, is dreadfully slow and boring. It follows every beat you'd expect and doesn't deviate from its course, and there's no high-stakes moments that you'd expect from a film like this ("Rambo: The Last Blood" has a similar premise where Rambo crosses the border to rescue a wayward child, but that film becomes more a "Home Alone" meets "Saw" concept, while this becomes more of a slow coming-of-age film). It's sweet, humorous, and heartfelt, but one that'll easily be forgotten because of how safe and polished the entire product turned out to be. The real highlight comes from the stunning cinematography from Ben Davis (who's done cinematography from a wide gambit of films from "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri" to "Avengers: Age of Ultron") as he paints a beautiful picture of the Mexican landscape - but you can also see lavish pictures and videos of the country online, and not through the lens of a slow-burn Eastwood vehicle that moves as slow as an old jalopy.

Sticking to his wheelhouse, Clint Eastwood both directs and stars in "Cry Macho," a film that touches on the aspects of masculinity and what it means to be a fully-developed person while coming under light attack by enemies and falling in love in the Mexican landscape.

The Score: B+