Joey Magidson
There is a novelty at the center of Bucking Fastard that nearly makes it worth the price of admission all on its own. The novelty? Watching Kate Mara and Rooney Mara not just share the screen for the first time together, but essentially act as one. It’s remarkable to watch them in action, and during the initial section of the film, it’s absolutely hypnotic. Sadly, that doesn’t sustain, and little by little, the novelty wears off. By the time the movie gets to its strangest section, you’ve lost interest. Sadly, that makes the flick, playing at the New York Film Festival, a bit of a letdown, given the potential of its premise.
Bucking Fastard has a certain oddness to it, which, go figure writer/director Werner Herzog made something weird, but before long, repetition sets in. Even when the third act goes in a very strange new, almost mythical, direction, it’s too little, too late. Boredom has already taken hold and the novelty has worn off. The Mara sisters deserved a fuller film, frankly, even though they give it their all.
The Holbrooke sisters, Jean (Kate) and Joan (Rooney), are so close that they speak almost exclusively in unison. In fact, they also love the same man, Gareth Mulroney (Orlando Bloom), though he sees them as just a bit of kinky fun. In fact, he’s taken them to court over their obsession with him, which got aggressive in the aftermath of his marriage to another woman. A media frenzy ensues, giving the sisters a bit of infamy. After all, they dress alike, seem to think alike, and even seem to dream alike. Their simple nature also invites them to be taken advantage of, which leads them to seek refuge with their Aunt Louise (Marion O’Dwyer) in the countryside.
Eventually, in the hopes of true love, alongside a land where better things are possible, they take action. The girls, alongside a fox they rescued named Cupid, begin digging through an entire mountain range near their new home, convinced that on the other side, they’ll find what they’re looking for.
Kate and Rooney Mara give a performance that’s almost impossible to separate. It’s truly them working in concert, acting as one. They each give their characters subtle differences, allowing you to see individual personalities, but they way they essentially give two halves of the same performance is quite the spectacle. They’re the reasons to see this, if you do. In addition to Orlando Bloom and Marion O’Dwyer, the small supporting cast features Simon Delaney, Domhnall Gleeson, and more.
Filmmaker Werner Herzog has something with the Mara sisters here, he just doesn’t seem to fully know what to do with them. The trial section is amusing and really lets you taken in the Maras, so it’s the most successful. The middle portion of Bucking Fastard really drags, with them struggling on their own in the city. By the time they start digging the tunnel, Herzog has lost the audience, and even when things get even stranger at the end, it’s too little, too late. Throw in an abrupt ending that’s likely to frustrate viewers and we have what’s sadly mostly a small scale misfire from the oddball genius.
Bucking Fastard can’t warrant a recommendation from me, and there’s lots more at NYFF that’s far worthier of your time, but Kate Mara and Rooney Mara make it so you can’t fully discount this one. Their performances, under the direction of Herzog, make this more than just a disappointment. It doesn’t succeed at what it’s hoping to do, admittedly, but the novelty of their acting is still something to behold.
SCORE: ★★1/2
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