Original title: ‘Dead Man’s Wire’ Review: Bill Skarsgard Does His Strongest Work to Date in Gus Van Sant’s Stylish and Gripping ’70s Throwback
Gus Van Sant is in top form with Dead Man’s Wire, a riveting true-crime dramatization of a hostage incident from 1977, during which Indianapolis man Tony Kiritzis, claiming that his mortgage broker had deliberately sabotaged his real estate investment, kidnapped the company president and rigged a sawn-off 12-gauge shotgun with a hair-trigger wire connected to his own neck. Scripted with fat-free economy by Austin Kolodney and made in the gritty, realistic style of Sidney Lumet’s ‘70s thrillers, the film pays tribute to Dog Day Afternoon while carving its own identity, led by a crackling performance full of unforced humor from Bill Skarsgard. In addition to the primary reference of Lumet, there are reminders of other directors whose work captured the national disillusionment of the time, like Alan J. Pakula and Sydney Pollack, but also a link back to earlier Van Sant films. The casting in small roles of Kelly Lynch and John Robinson, respectively, recalls the raw, grainy look of Drugsto