William Walker was one of the more interesting characters of the 19th century--though he's pretty much forgotten today. And, with films like "Burn!" and "Walker", he'll probably pretty much remain forgotten! Let me explain. I saw Marlon Brando's film "Burn!" and noticed that almost NONE of the film bore any similarity to the like of the title character, William Walker. It had a very broad similarity and it used his name--but that is all. So, wanting to learn more about the real guy, I did some research. He was a very interesting and screwy guy--an adventurer that lived to start self-serving revolutions in Central America. And, amazingly, with a tiny rag-tag army he became the leader, briefly, of Nicaragua just before the US Civil War. He also was a staunch supporter of returning slavery to these nations which had outlawed slavery in the preceding decades. And, because he was such a fascinating man, I was excited to learn about the film "Walker"--a film that purports to be a true story of the man. Unfortunately, it isn't. Although the film is much closer to the man than in "Burn!", it is completely inaccurate and portrays Walker as a man so bizarre and idiotic you question whether he had the ability to dress himself--let alone lead a successful revolution! Imagine taking a historical biopic, "Blazing Saddles" and a Fellini or Buñuel and combining them! The film is rather pointless and annoying.
Through most of the film, Ed Harris seems to be almost sleepwalking through the title role. I don't necessarily blame him--that is the sort of performance the director wanted. But it just made no sense. And, as the film progressed, it made less and less and less sense. And, at times, the film inserted things SOMEONE must have thought were funny--but weren't. For example, at the one hour mark, two Nicaraguans are shown reading PEOPLE and NEWSWEEK magazines....in 1857! And, in another case, he and walks casually through a botched battle--showing no emotion whatsoever and not fighting as his men are being slaughtered around him. So what does he FINALLY do? He sits down to play the piano as men are dying all around him!!
The problem is that if it was meant as satire, it didn't stray far enough or get weird enough. If it was meant as a biopic, well, it was a total failure--with too many surreal moments and little attention to historical accuracy. The resulting film is simply a stupid mess--and one I really cannot recommend even for bad movie buffs.
By the way, if you care, Ed Harris really is doing sign language in the early part of the film. It's not great but he did a good job here.
Through most of the film, Ed Harris seems to be almost sleepwalking through the title role. I don't necessarily blame him--that is the sort of performance the director wanted. But it just made no sense. And, as the film progressed, it made less and less and less sense. And, at times, the film inserted things SOMEONE must have thought were funny--but weren't. For example, at the one hour mark, two Nicaraguans are shown reading PEOPLE and NEWSWEEK magazines....in 1857! And, in another case, he and walks casually through a botched battle--showing no emotion whatsoever and not fighting as his men are being slaughtered around him. So what does he FINALLY do? He sits down to play the piano as men are dying all around him!!
The problem is that if it was meant as satire, it didn't stray far enough or get weird enough. If it was meant as a biopic, well, it was a total failure--with too many surreal moments and little attention to historical accuracy. The resulting film is simply a stupid mess--and one I really cannot recommend even for bad movie buffs.
By the way, if you care, Ed Harris really is doing sign language in the early part of the film. It's not great but he did a good job here.