There's really only two things I ask of a western; good cinematography and cool characters. Looks like director John Maclean has those covered with his feature-film debut, SLOW WEST. The movie follows a 16-year-old boy (Kodi Smith-Mcphee) on a journey across 19th Century frontier America in search of the woman he loves, while accompanied by mysterious traveler Silas (Michael Fassbender). The first trailer hit back in March, but you can get a good sense of the off-kilter humor and gunplay involved with this latest promo.
Fassbender is easily one of the most charismatic actors working today, and while he has a plethora of great characters coming down the line (Macbeth, Steve Jobs, Magneto), the enigmatic Silas looks like it will rank up there with the best of them. SLOW WEST is looking at a very limited release right now, but here's hoping that changes in a few months' time so more people can see this Coen-esque feature in a theater!
SLOW WEST hits limited theaters and VOD May 15th.