Clint Eastwood is 91 years old, and he is still making movies.  Pretty good ones.  It’s kind of a shock to see him in Cry Macho because he is, well, frail.  His character still throws a punch and tames a bucking bronco, but he sometimes needs a few breaths to complete his sentences.  Eastwood never did speak much in his films, but when he does, he usually has something valuable to say (though perhaps not at political conventions).  Anyway, what he is doing is remarkable, and that fact should be recognized.

Clint Eastwood’s film is an adaptation of N. Richard Nash’s novel, which has had a torturous road to the silver screen.  Broken down cowboy Mike Milo (Eastwood) is hired by his former boss to go to Mexico and persuade the man’s teenage son to come to Texas to live with his father.  The boy, Rafael (Eduardo Minett), is two steps away from jail, and Milo finds him — and his fighting rooster, Macho — and begins the journey back to Texas.  But the boy’s mother has her own plans, which cause a lengthy detour to a small Mexican hamlet, where the old and young men get to know and trust each other.  As important as the journey is to both of them, the detour changes everything.

A relatively quiet, unassuming story, Cry Macho allows Milo to reflect upon his life as young Rafael dreams about his own future.  Their situation allows, indeed forces, them to depend on each other, and they consistently surprise one another.  It largely avoids sentimentality (as well as brutality) even as it delves into what makes life special.  It is ironic and amusing and occasionally profound.  It provides good roles for Eastwood and Minett and a great one for Natalia Traven (Marta).  It is very believable and somewhat suspenseful because we just know getting the boy back to Texas won’t be as easy as it sounds.  And having the rooster around all the time works really, really well.

Cry Macho isn’t a great film, nor a great drama.  It seems to rush into its premise, preferring to fill in the details as the story moves along.  Some of it is pat, some of its points are telegraphed ahead of time and the sense of danger could certainly have been heightened.  Yet even that works in its favor, allowing the characters to relax a bit and find their places in a generally hostile world.  I enjoyed this trip south of the border and I’m glad Clint Eastwood was my guide.  ☆ ☆ ☆.  16 March 2022.