Who saw The Mule? Members' Comments (NO SPOILERS, PLEASE)

[KC]

David Cox (I am assuming that's the name you saw) has actually worked with Joel Cox before. I assume David is his son or another relative of his, but I definitely remember the name from the credits of other Eastwood movies, and I think he also helped Joel Cox edit some of the non-Eastwood films that he's done in recent years as well, like "Prisoners."

Yes, David Cox, or David S. Cox, as the IMDb has it. I never noticed his name in the credits before, but his work on Eastwood films actually goes all the way back to Flags of our Fathers. At first he was a camera p.a. (camera production assistant), but since Invictus he's been an assistant film editor. One of the non-Clint projects he's worked on was Battlecreek (2017), directed by Alison Eastwood.

IMDb doesn't yet have him listed in the credits for The Mule.

[john snow/targaryan]

Wasn't sure what to expect from this movie after reading reviews, understanding the lack of publicity from Warner Bros and the timing of the release. Tried to go in with no expectations. I think KC summed it up fairly well. When you've seen a lifetime of Eastwood movies of all genres, you tend to notice similarities, specifically in the movies Clint acts in. He tends to favor the bad/absent, father/husband theme. So I felt like I've seen parts of this movie in other movies Clint has acted in. This wasn't an Oscar winning performance on any level. However, it was an enjoyable Clint vehicle. Equal parts humor, family drama with a little suspense thrown in. Didn't agree with the alleged negatives relating to racial stereotyping, Earl is not Walt on any level. Earl is enjoying life and living it to the best of his ability. All the other actors were well cast, from his family to cartel members to DEA agents. In the end, I liked it enough to give it a second viewing and recommend it to non Eastwood fans, if there is such a person{s}.

On a side note, I must register my surprise at the lack of fan reviews from a site that currently boasts 5,216 members. In light of the fact this could be the 88 year old Eastwood's final movie in front of the camera, one would have thought this board would be very active with reviews. Not here to judge, but if you're a true Clint Eastwood fan, you won't be disappointed. Unless your username is AKA23. Think the key is don't pre judge or have specific expectations on what this movie should have been. Just enjoy Clint being Clint.   

[KC]

Thank you, john snow/targaryan! We're very glad to have your review here, and welcome to the Board!

To partly account for the lack of fan reviews here: This site has been around in one form or another for 20 years, and quite a few of our best members are no longer active, unfortunately. And equally unfortunately, a large percentage of our 5,216 members (more than 3,000, in fact) registered, but never posted at all. Perhaps another thousand only posted once. Why? We don't know.

At any rate, we're glad you found your way here and would be very happy to hear your opinions on anything else Clint-related.

[Matt]

Something else that might be surprising is that it feels like more than half the active members are from outside of the U.S., so they haven't had the opportunity to see The Mule yet.  Keep checking back, John, and there will be more added as the film debuts worldwide.

[Matt]

Think the key is don't pre judge or have specific expectations on what this movie should have been. Just enjoy Clint being Clint.

I can agree with that. I did watch the trailer, but only once, and my memory isn't what it used to be, so I didn't really remember it anyway. So there was no preconceived impression that it would be a hard-hitting, dark, drama. I had just read AKA's review before seeing it, and went in with little to no expectations, and I think that's the best way to see a movie.

[antonis]

Guys I need to know.
Was Palooka's performance any good?

[AKA23]

I don't know if Palooka was in this one. He usually posts about his experience after films are released, and he hasn't done that. I think he may not have pursued being an extra for "The Mule."

[john snow/targaryan]

Good Lord! Scrolled through the 4 pages and If I've counted correctly, 7 members including myself have posted reviews. 7 members. Good Lord!

[Matt]

Seven members is a good percentage of the number of active U.S. members we have that post here now.

[AKA23]

Good Lord! Scrolled through the 4 pages and If I've counted correctly, 7 members including myself have posted reviews. 7 members. Good Lord!

I expected more people to have posted in this thread too John, so glad you did. Do you have any friends that might be interested in posting on our board?

[john snow/targaryan]

Seven members is a good percentage of the number of active U.S. members we have that post here now.

[Hocine]

I expected more people to have posted in this thread too John, so glad you did. Do you have any friends that might be interested in posting on our board?

So did I.
I don’t know. Maybe some members have not seen it yet or they have been too busy for posting a review.
In France, The Mule will be released on Wednesday, January 23. So, I have to be patient.
Anyway, it’s coming soon.
I think that the Mule’s posters will appear next week in public areas.
I will post a review in this thread as soon as possible.
By the way, I really enjoyed your reviews full of informations and details, AKA23 and KC.
I found them very interesting.
I’m so excited and curious to see the last Clint Eastwood picture and his performance as an actor.
I hope that it will do well at the French box office: Gran Torino, Million Dollar Baby, Invictus and American Sniper did very well here. Even Hereafter did well.
Welcome to the board, John !

[palooka]

Guys I need to know.
Was Palooka's performance any good?

Sadly, I wasn't involved with this one. I'm sure the end product is greatly improved as a result!

[KC]

Sadly, I wasn't involved with this one. I'm sure the end product is greatly improved as a result!

Heck, Palooka, you'd have been great in the VFW polka scene. Or the day lily breeders' convention! Can't see you fitting into the cartel boss's orgy, though.

[Christopher]

I saw The Mule today and enjoyed it. One of the issues I'd had with 15:17 to Paris was how the movie felt way too long with just a 94 minute run time. But The Mule is much more engaging.

[antonis]

Finally saw it.
Definetelly one of Eastwood's best films. Great acting,great story and pacing, etc. Was gripping  from the very start to the powerful ending.

The Mule is up there with his best films such as Million Dollar Baby, Unforgiven and Gran Torino.

Our hero has grown old.His physical powers ain't the ones they used to be but, he still behaves like the man's man.The court scene is the apotheosis of the "Eastwoodian" mythology.

This is one not to be missed.

[AKA23]

Antonis and Christopher, you're not getting off that easy! I am happy that you both enjoyed this film, but can you tell us more? If I can post several posts long stream of consciousness thoughts at 2AM after the premiere, you guys can definitely muster more of a review than this! Help us out guys

Antonis, I am particularly interested in what it is about "The Mule" that makes you think that it is up there with his best films? I haven't heard that reaction from anyone who has seen "The Mule," save for that one review that called it his best in 25 years, but that wasn't a representative opinion. Tell us more about what you enjoyed and why you're saying that?

Looking forward to hearing more from you, Christopher and Antonis. Thanks for posting your thoughts!

[antonis]

A simple story told with the usual Eastwood style. In this one as close to neorealism as a film can get.
What do we see ? The physical process of a mythical figure which accompanies us for a very long time.
A common answer he usually gives is about what have become of the Callahan character. .. fishing etc .This character was re examined in Gran Torino, as was The Man with No Name in Unforgiven but, what about all the other characters that apparted   the Eastwood persona like Red Stoval or Bronco Billy?  What has become of them?
Eastwood's universe is much more complicated than most people think.
In this film we get our answers .
I really liked the way our hero is presented as an old man. Vulnerable but ,still a MAN.
AKA,  I liked this one because I prefer to watch his movies as part of a whole (mythology ) and not separately.
Apart from that you know what the man said about opinions 

[AKA23]

I just got back from seeing "The Mule" again and liked it so much better the second time. "The Mule" is another in a long line of Eastwood films that is a meditation on lost opportunities, regrets, and second chances to achieve redemption. Earl Stone joins Gus Lobel, Walt Kowalski, Frankie Dunn, Terry McCaleb, Frank Corvin, Steve Everett, Luther Whitney, and Frank Horrigan as characters who at first fail, but who later, through hard work, perseverance, and dogged determination, manage to succeed. Gus Lobel reconnects with his daughter Mickie; Walt Kowalski sacrifices his life to protect his new family; Frankie Dunn experiences love with his surrogate daughter Maggie; Terry McCaleb finally catches the Code Killer; Frank Corvin flies into space; Luther Whitney helps to avenge Christie's death; and Frank Horrigan saves a second President from assassination even though he was too impotent to save his first charge. Like all of the characters before him, Earl Stone is redeemed, this time by mending the family bonds that were shattered due to his own selfishness, insensitivity, and a lifelong choice to put his love for the day lilly and the ephemeral comfort they bring him above his roles as a father, a husband, and a man.

"The Mule" is also a meditation on aging. Earl Stone is unlike any character that Eastwood has ever played before because he is fragile and vulnerable, and running out of time. He knows that his life is coming to an end, and he can't bear to leave it without seeking to repair all the damage that he has done. He thinks it may be too late, but like all Eastwood characters who face long odds, he has to try!

"The Mule" is also a social commentary on the ways in which our current society has failed to provide men like Earl with what they need to survive. For Earl Stone is not only running out of time, he's also running out of options. His business has been foreclosed upon, and the Internet has made him irrelevant and unvalued. Earl always put "work in front of family," but now even the work that has always sustained him is disappearing, and he doesn't know what to do. Work is all he knows. It's all he's ever been good at, and now, he faces the terrifying prospect of not only being a "damn failure" in his own home, but a "damn failure" in his business too. So, when the opportunity arises to "just drive," he takes it, because in his mind, he has no other choice. He suspects that there is something very wrong about what he's doing, but his willful blindness allows him to achieve the redemption which he seeks, so he looks the other way. 

[AKA23]

He's always played by the rules, but like all characters before him, the society that he must exist in has not kept up its end of the bargain. Eastwood has always played men of action when the environments which surround him fail to work as they should. When society is unjust, men of action must step in, and that's what Eastwood's characters always do. The police fail to protect Walt Kowalski's surrogate family, so Walt must sacrifice himself. The referees at Maggie's match failed to safeguard her from the brutality of her opponent, so Frankie must sacrifice his salvation to relieve the suffering that they caused. Steve Everett has to rescue Frank Beachum from the electric chair because the criminal justice system convicted the wrong man. Luther Whitney has to bring the President to justice because the system is corrupt and allows men like him to thrive while good men and women suffer. And last, but certainly not least, Dirty Harry has to act in extra-legal ways when the criminal justice system keeps failing the very citizens he had always sworn to protect and serve. Like all those characters before him, Earl Stone has to act when society fails, this time to save himself, so that he can continue to survive.

On the technical side, Clint Eastwood, Bradley Cooper, Laurence Fishburne, Dianne Wiest and Andy Garcia are perfect for their roles. Arturo's melancholic score hits all the right notes, and despite being nearly two hours long, the film never drags.

Although it feels like the redemption of his daughter and ex-wife arrives too quickly and isn't entirely earned, and I definitely could have lived without all of those scenes where he is singing alone in his car, or visiting prostitutes, "The Mule" is consistently entertaining. A darker tone may have better served the story I wanted to see, but it wasn't the film Eastwood wanted to tell. I would have liked to have seen Earl wrestle more with his choices to sell cocaine, since in order to be personally redeemed, he facilitated the destruction of thousands of others, and the film does not show that or appear to care much about it. However, as "The Mule" showed, Earl is running out of time, and so is Eastwood, to make movies like "The Mule." I have felt for awhile that this may be Eastwood's final movie, and not only as an actor, but if this is the end, it's a fitting way to ride off into the sunset.