KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON 2023
by
Martin Scorsese
“In April, millions of tiny flowers spread over the blackjack hills and vast prairies in the Osage territory of Oklahoma… In May, when coyotes howl beneath an unnervingly large moon, taller plants, such as spiderworts and black-eyed Susans, begin to creep over the tinier blooms… The necks of the smaller flowers break and their petals flutter away, and before long they are buried underground. This is why the Osage… refer to May as the time of the flower-killing moon.”
The “flower-killing moon” refers to the season contributing to the deaths of the small flowers, while “killers of the flower moon” describes murders that took place during that period (1921 onwards). It also refers to white colonizers destroying the Native American culture and their animalistic traditions. It was in Flower Moon of 1921 that the ‘reign of terror’ started with the discovery of the body of a native Osage American woman. The names of the book and the film are a tribute to that tragedy, and what followed afterwards.
David Grann’s book, Killers of the Flower Moon, published in 2017, focussed not just on the numerous Osage murders that took place in the first quarter of the 20th century but also on how a detailed federal investigation into these murders at President Cavin Coolidge’s behest furthered the rise of the recently established FBI under the leadership of J. Edgar Hoover. The Osage people, inheritors of the worst quality of land in Oklahoma, stumbled upon oil, and began rolling in riches. White money brought with it death and misery, free of charge. Full and half-blooded members of the community were deemed too irresponsible or incompetent, and law required court-appointed white legal guardians to manage their money for them! Many Osage heirs, male and female, were killed for their fortunes. On their deaths, their headrights were transferred to the surviving kin, and on their deaths, passed on to to the last white husband left standing.
This film tells one such story of Mollie Kyle whose family-owned substantial oil headrights. Ernest Burkhart married her out of love but found himself manipulated by his uncle, King Bill Hale, into taking part in a conspiracy to knock off her mother and couple of sisters to ensure that all rights got transferred to her. On Ernest Hale’s convincing, Ernest even administered poisoned insulin to his diabetic wife to ‘slow her down’ to take control of her property. The film exposes White American greed and depravity at its worst and must be applauded for this rare honest confessional attempt.
Leonardo DiCaprio was deemed to play FBI Agent Tom White who had cracked open the case, but he lobbied for and landed the part of Ernest Burkhart who had, in cahoots with and at the direction of his uncle William King Hale, plotted the murder of several Osage relatives of his wife in a bid to become the sole beneficiary of her estate. Jesse Plemons has played the FBI agent with quiet aplomb, whereas I found Leonardo trying too hard to stay relevant against Robert De Niro, Lily Gladstone and even Plemons. With his jaw jutted out like Brando, face all swollen, forehead careworn and eyes betraying confusion, DiCaprio ends up as a caricature symbolizing white rapacity. He is, surprisingly, the weakest link of Marty’s film. Ernest, a World War I vet, was definitely his uncle’s camp-follower and his henchman. Although he had married Mollie out of love, he could not help becoming Hale’s puppet in the latter’s scheme to appropriate the Osage wealth. Hale had established himself in the Osage country and pretended to be their friend, well-wisher and guide. In how he misuses that trust lies the tragedy of the highest order.
Robert De Niro, in contrast, had an easier task ahead of him. King Bill Hale was not just a cold-blooded crime boss but also a smooth-talking businessman who cultivated shady characters and encouraged them to perpetrate heinous crimes for his personal benefit. Bob is in his elements and was rightfully nominated for Best Supporting Actor by the Academy, which also nominated the film for Best Picture, Director and Actress. With zero wins out of ten nominations, Killers of the Flower Moon matched the records set by Gangs of New York and The Wolf of Wall Street.
Lily Gladstone nourishes the soul of the film with her brooding presence and elegant manner. Jesse Plemons is always reliable; in their scenes together, he makes quite an impression in DiCaprio’s presence. Mention must be made of Brendan Fraser for his small but impactful part as Hale’s attorney who tried to bully Ernest into not testifying against his uncle.
Killers of the Flower Moon is a tragedy of the native who seems overwhelmed by developments taking place around him. He is being hunted down by non-natives for money and influence. The film narrative is deeply immersed in Osage conventions and traditions and hats off to writer Eric Roth and Martin Scorsese for such a sensitive and inclusive portrayal. And yet, while the white characters are exhibited as melancholic, alcoholic, diabetic and wasting away, whites are shown as greedy, crafty and manipulative. There is no middle ground, there seem to be no round characters. That is one flaw the film could have done without.
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