\u00a9Courtesy of TIFF<\/p>\n
David Lynch\u2019s surreal “Eraserhead<\/strong>“<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>was about to flicker onto screens, and Jimmy Carter had just been sworn in as president. It was early 1977 \u2014 post-Kennedy, post-Watergate America \u2014 when Indianapolis businessman Tony Kiritsis stormed into an office and wired a sawed-off shotgun to the back of a mortgage broker\u2019s head. What followed was 63 hours of live-broadcast psychological theater. Gus Van Sant seizes on this surreal spectacle and spins it into a punchy, blackly comic thriller. It\u2019s the filmmaker\u2019s best film in years.<\/p>\n Swedish actor Bill Skarsg\u00e5rd, son of Stellan and brother of Alexander and Gustaf, plays the desperate, down-on-his-luck Kiritsis. After being misled on a loan that left him with no security and mounting debts, Kiritsis snapped. Fueled by frustration, humiliation, and a sense of injustice, he took Richard Hall (Dacre Montgomery) hostage (he had originally intended to target Hall\u2019s father), rigging a sawed-off shotgun to the broker\u2019s head. One wrong move and it would fire. He demanded $5 million and an apology from the Hall family. What could have been a private act of vengeance turned into a public spectacle when news crews, led by a TV reporter (Myha’la) captured the 63-hour standoff live on television, broadcasting Kiritsis\u2019s strange mix of menace, wit, and absurdity into living rooms across the nation.<\/p>\n Bill Skarsg\u00e5rd shines. His characterization makes Kiritsis not only chaotic and magnetic, but unexpectedly charming \u2014 an antihero from the very start. This is arguably the actor\u2019s strongest role to date. Before “Dead Man\u2019s Wire<\/strong>“<\/em>, he had already built a diverse body of work: international audiences know him best as the terrifyingly charismatic Pennywise in “It<\/strong>“<\/em> (2017) and “It: Chapter Two<\/strong>“<\/em> (2019), but his range is much broader. From Tv-series “Hemlock Grove”<\/em> (2013-15) and “Nosferatu<\/strong>“<\/em> (2024) to Swedish films such as “Simple Simon<\/strong>“<\/em> (“I rymden finns inga k\u00e4nslor<\/strong>“<\/em>, <\/em>2010<\/em>) and “Simon and the Oaks<\/strong>“<\/em> (“Simon och ekarna<\/strong>“<\/em>, <\/em>2011<\/em>), to the Netflix miniseries “Clark<\/strong>“<\/em> (2022)<\/em>,<\/em> where he plays the infamous Swedish criminal Clark Olofsson, who was involved in the Norrmalmstorg robbery that coined the term \u2018Stockholm Syndrome\u2019 (wittily referenced in “Dead Man\u2019s Wire”<\/em> by Al Pacino). Across these roles, Skarsg\u00e5rd has showcased remarkable subtlety and emotional depth.<\/p>\n Here, it all crystallizes. Skarsg\u00e5rd\u2019s clumsy body language, apologetic tone, and quick, witty comments make Kiritsis oddly sympathetic. Morally, it\u2019s complex: we sympathize with him even though he is holding someone hostage at gunpoint. He is a criminal, yes, but also a victim of injustice \u2014 an underdog lashing out at a system he believes is corrupt or abusive. The script by Austin Kolodney tightens this tension, pulling us between admiration for his courage and horror at his violence.<\/p>\n Van Sant stages it with grandeur. Beneath the black comedy, he asks audiences to confront their own morality. After more than a decade of uneven misfires (“Promised Land<\/strong>“<\/em> 2012<\/em>, “The Sea of Trees<\/strong>“<\/em> 2015<\/em>) and the modest film (“Don\u2019t Worry, He Won\u2019t Get Far on Foot<\/strong>“<\/em> 2018<\/em>), “Dead Man\u2019s Wire<\/strong>“<\/em> feels like a return to sharp form. As ever, Van Sant gravitates toward society\u2019s outsiders \u2014 hustlers, junkies, drifters \u2014 and here he captures Kiritsis as both victim and villain. The film recalls the grainy realism of “Drugstore Cowboy<\/strong>“<\/em> (1989) and “My Own Private Idaho<\/strong>“<\/em> (1991)<\/em>,<\/em> and the 1970s setting of “Milk<\/strong>“<\/em> (2008<\/em>)<\/em>. It also tips its hat to Sidney Lumet\u2019s “Dog Day Afternoon<\/strong>“<\/em> (1975). Al Pacino even appears in a brief, biting turn as M.L. Hall, the cold-hearted patriarch of the mortgage company and Kiritsis\u2019s true intended target.<\/p>\n Van Sant layers the film with groovy music, too, weaving local radio DJ Fred Temple (Colman Domingo) into the story. Through Tony\u2019s obsession with the DJ, a cool playlist anchors us in the decade: songs from Roberta Flack, Barry White, Donna Summer, Deodato\u2019s jazz-funk \u201cAlso Sprach Zarathustra,\u201d Yes\u2019 \u201cI\u2019ve Seen All Good People,\u201d Labi Siffre\u2019s \u201cCannock Chase,\u201d alongside Danny Elfman\u2019s score. It\u2019s immersive and steeped in 1977 atmosphere.<\/p>\n