Old Henry
With a 95% positive rating by critics and a 92% positive audience rating (*1), Old Henry is one of the most critically acclaimed and popular western movies in recent memory. At first sight it tells a rather familiar western story of a widower and a father with some dark secrets who desires to live a peaceful life. Early on in the movie we notice that he’s in possession of a collection of fire-arms that he is carefully hiding from his son Wyatt. Having seen many westerns in our lives, we expect that sooner or later this old man will be forced to pick up his guns and become, once again, the man he used to be (but metaphorically buried years ago) - and that’s exactly what happens . But nevertheless the movie manages to surprise us. The quintessential western about the man with a violent past who is forced to face his inner demons, is of course Shane (1953, George Stevens), but in Old Henry this familiar western trope is mixed with some...
