Get Low has its roots in local legends regarding a recluse mountain man named Felix Breazeale. Breazeale threw his own funeral party while he was still alive in Roane County, Tennessee in 1938, providing the inspiration for a story written by Chris Provenzano and Scott Seeke. Provenzano turned the story into a screenplay along with writer C. Gaby Mitchell.
Provenzano's iteration of this tale involves a hermit named Felix Bush (Robert Duvall) who has lived in seclusion in his mountain cabin for forty years (the first 38 years are the hardest). He is the target of malicious rumors and boyish pranks. Between replacing windows broken by delinquent children, tending his mule, splitting his own wood and building his own furniture, Bush has very little time for much else. Bush looks weary. He is ready for change.
When Bush conceives the idea to throw his own funeral party, his ability to manipulate people and read motives becomes clear. When the local minister, Reverend Horton (Gerald McRainey) refuses to hold a funeral for a living person, a local funeral home steps in to help. Buddy (Lucas Black) overhears the conversation between Bush and Horton and explains the situation to the proprietor of the funeral home, Frank Quinn (Bill Murray). Together, they offer assistance to Bush. In the process, we learn that Bush once "took up" with Mattie Darrow (Sissy Spacek). We also find that he is hiding a long-kept secret that he needs to get out. With the assistance of an old friend, Reverend Jackson (Bill Cobbs), Bush is able to quiet his demons.
Get Low tells an intriguing story. The story lies in the quirky main character and the people who cross paths with him. While the main character is well developed, along with a couple other key characters, a few are predictable and flat. I like quirky characters and will probably recommend this film only on that fact along with the acting. The story was poorly executed, relying on a tediously long set up for a rather weak climax. The film felt much longer than the hour and forty minute run time. While the film injected some mild dark humor at times, it wasn't particularly funny, slightly interesting and occasionally dramatic. The dialogue was engaging, using mountain dialect at times without overdoing it or becoming a caricature. However, it did not seem consistent with 1930s language. The writing could have been much better.
Robert Duvall was spotless. His performance gave the eccentric main character a rugged charm that added dimension. Sissy Spacek did not have much screen time, but was important when she was on screen. Her interactions with Duvall were credible and well executed. Two veterans doing what they do...saving a weak film. Lucas Black was much more enjoyable in this film than he was in Legion, the last film I saw him in. Even though his character seemed to be on the 1930s version of Prozac, Lucas gave the role likability, which made his character (and the story) matter.
Get Low was rated PG-13 by the MPAA. The film did not have much questionable material, and I would not have limited the audience by age. The film would be good for helping put the kids to sleep. There was a scene of a burning house that a man runs out of, a fist fight, some language and descriptions of violence. Not a whole lot to justify a PG-13 rating. I think the rating is there more to help people realize that anyone under 13 will be bored to tears.
Get Low had some good qualities. A couple of the characters and the acting salvaged this film for me. The concept was excellent, but poorly executed. Anachronisms, flat characters and horrible pacing made this film seem thrown together. I stuck it out, because I wanted to be let in on the secret, which I guess means there was something redeeming in the writing. Yet the "big reveal" left me feeling cheated. The enjoyment should have been in the story telling and characters, but just never reached its potential. Mildly recommended. 5.5/10.
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