Cry Macho (2021) Warner Bros./Western-Drama RT: 104 minutes Rated PG-13 (language, thematic elements) Director: Clint Eastwood Screenplay: Nick Schenk and N. Richard Nash Music: Mark Mancina Cinematography: Ben Davis Release date: September 17, 2021 (US) Cast: Clint Eastwood, Eduardo Minett, Natalia Traven, Dwight Yoakam, Fernanda Urrejola, Horacio Garcia Rojas, Ivan Hernandez, Abiah Martinez. Box Office: $10.3M (US)/$16.5M (World)
Rating: *** ½
Clint Eastwood isn’t just an actor or filmmaker; he’s an American icon. For close to 60 years, he’s made an indelible impression on the collective psyche of generations of audiences. He’s worked in nearly every genre be it action (Dirty Harry), western (Unforgiven), drama (The Bridges of Madison County), thriller (Tightrope), comedy (Pink Cadillac) and on two occasions, shared the screen with an orangutan (Every Which Way but Loose and Any Which Way You Can). That he’s still going strong at 91 years of age is incredible.
As much as I admire his tenacity and (true) grit, I think Clint ought to take a cue from Robert Redford and retire from acting. His latest film Cry Macho would be the perfect high note for him to go out on. He delivers a magnificent performance as a character not too far removed from the grumpy old man he played in Gran Torino. He plays Mike Milo, a retired rodeo star with a lot of emotional baggage. His soon-to-be former boss Howard, played by country star Dwight Yoakam (Sling Blade), goes through the list (severe back injury, alcoholism, etc.) before firing him as his ranch hand. BTW, it takes place in 1979.
A year later, Howard shows up at Mike’s house with a proposition. He wants him to go to Mexico City and retrieve his 13YO son Rafo (Minett, Como Dice el Dicho) whom he hasn’t seen since he was six. He’s been living south of the border with his hard-partying mother (Urrejola, Narcos: Mexico) who has two parental settings, abusive and neglectful. When Mike asks her about the boy, she tells him he’s a criminal living on the streets, stealing cars and taking part in cockfights. The oldster finds the boy (quite easily, in fact) and tells him his father wants him to come live with him in Texas. Rafo, intrigued by the idea of living on a ranch, agrees to go with him.
Mom, none too happy about this development, demands Mike leave Mexico without her son. Of course, he’s hiding in Mike’s truck with his pet rooster Macho. After some debate, they hit the road with one of the mother’s bodyguards following them. The boy is crazy about cowboys and talks a lot about being macho, a concept Mike thinks is way over-valued.
Cry Macho meanders around a bit until the guys finally find themselves in a small border town where they both see that life can be beautiful. They meet a kind, middle-aged café owner named Marta (Traven, Collateral Damage) who takes a shine to the old gringo and young man. They stay in an old church until Marta offers to put them up while they’re in town. They come across a horse ranch where Mike teaches Rafo to ride while acting as the town vet for the locals. Mike develops a special bond with Marta’s deaf granddaughter. At long last, Mike has found happiness, but will it last?
The script for Cry Macho has been kicking around Hollywood since the N. Richard Nash novel was first published in 1975. At various points, Roy Scheider, Burt Lancaster and Arnold Schwarzenegger were attached to star. I’m sure they would have been good, but Clint absolutely crushes it despite one issue obvious to anybody that’s read the book. In it, his character is in his late 60s/early 70s. Clint is obviously not that young. He looks and sounds like the nonagenarian that he is with his raspy voice, thin frame and frail-looking body. It should be difficult, impossible even, to accept him in the role. I think he pulls it off. It’s easily his best performance since Gran Torino. It’s not dissimilar either. Once again, his character is a cantankerous old coot imparting wisdom to an angry ethnic teen in need of a positive male role model. Sure, it’s redundant, but it’s still a great fit for Clint.
I’m not at all familiar with young co-star Eduardo Minett. Cry Macho is the Mexican actor’s first foray into American films. I’ve not seen his other work, but he’s very good in his first north of the border effort. He has a naturalistic quality that makes him believable as a smart, distrustful street kid who wants a loving family. He’s not going to get it from his whore of a mother. His father has ulterior motives for wanting his son to come live with him. He finally experiences the idea of family when he and Mike bond with Marta and her granddaughters. BTW, Traven is terrific as the tough but tender caregiver. Yes, there’s romance in the air between her and Mike.
What I like best about Cry Macho is the slow, unhurried pace of the story and the beauty and simplicity with which it unfolds. It’s a western only in the sense of setting and it involves cowboys and horses. It’s not about action or shooting it out with cops, Federales or cartel baddies. It’s a drama that gets by on quieter moments like when Mike makes a connection with the little deaf girl or tends to a woman’s injured goat. It’s a sincere little film that boasts gorgeous scenery courtesy of cinematographer Ben Davis (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri). The score by Mark Mancina (Training Day) is also great.
Simply put, Cry Macho is a wonderful little movie that would allow Clint to make a graceful exit should he decide to hang up his hat after this one. However, I have a feeling that he’ll keep going and going until the very end. If he keeps making them this good, I say go for it.
