Galveston

Galveston (from Weird and Wonderful II: Fifty More Cult Films by George Hughes, available from www.freefall-productions.com)

2018 / US / 91 minutes

“The past isn’t real. You remember it how you want to remember it.”

Director: Melanie Laurent / Screenplay: Jim Hammett, based on the novel by Nic Pizzolatto / Director of Photography: Arnaud Potier / Music: Marc Chouarain and Eugenie Jacobson / Production: Tyler Davidson for Low Spark Films / Cast: Ben Foster (Roy), Elle Fanning (Rocky), Maria Valverde (Carmen), Beau Bridges (Stan), Lili Reinhart (Tiffany), Adepero Oduye (Loraine), Robert Aramayo (Tray), C.K. McFarland (Nancy).

In 2008, ex- convict Roy Cady (Ben Foster) is living in Galveston, Texas as Hurricane Ike approaches. Twenty years earlier, Roy was working as a hitman for small-time gangster Stan (Beau Bridges) in New Orleans. Just after Roy’s girlfriend Carmen (Maria Valverde) leaves him for his boss, he’s mistakenly diagnosed with terminal lung cancer.

   Sent on a seemingly routine job by Stan, Roy realises he’s been set up over Carmen and takes out his would- be killers. Roy also rescues Raquel (Elle Fanning), a young prostitute known as “Rocky”, from them and takes her on the run with him. As they drive into Texas, Rocky asks Roy to make a stop at a house that turns out to be her stepfather’s.

   Once there, Rocky shoots her stepfather and takes Tiffany, a younger girl she says is her sister, with her and Roy. Arriving at Roy’s hometown of Galveston, the three of them check into  a motel run by the beaky but well- meaning Nancy (C.K. McFarland) to hide out while Roy plans his revenge on Stan.

   With another guest at the motel, the shifty Tray (Robert Aramayo), taking an unwanted interest in the new group and Stan’s enforcers still looking for them, Roy also discovers that Tiffany is not Rocky’s sister, but her daughter. Although he considers leaving them behind, Roy decides to continue protecting the two girls.

   Back in the present, the older Roy is visited by the adult Tiffany (Lili Reinhardt), who later became separated from him and Rocky and has only just found him again. Having spent most of the intervening years in prison, Roy finally tells the rest of the story, revealing to Tiffany who she really is and what really happened in 1988...

   Based on True Detective creator Nic Pizzolatto’s 2010 novel, Galveston features outstanding performances from Ben Foster and Elle Fanning. Although he looks different from the character as described in the book, Foster perfectly captures Roy’s only just contained rage as well as the gradually emerging decency that compels him to do something good in the face of his (seemingly) impending death.

   Meanwhile, Elle Fanning (who had well and truly stepped out from her sister Dakota’s shadow with her lead role in The Neon Demon in 2016) proves herself the perfect choice for bringing Pizzolato’s tragic heroine Rocky to life. The supporting cast are also extremely good, with Bridges, Valverde, McFarland and Aramayo all creating lasting impressions in relatively small roles.

   Although the initial screenplay was written by Pizzolatto himself, the writer ultimately ended up credited under the pseudonym of “Jim Hammett”. The reasons for this still aren’t entirely clear and so far only producer Tyler Davidson has offered any kind of explanation, simply saying that Pizzolatto wanted his name taken off the film due to director Melanie Laurent’s uncredited changes to his script. But while the film lacks Roy’s narration (the novel is written entirely from his point of view in 2008) the plot is followed very faithfully, right down to the devastating ending that few readers ever expected to see on screen.

   Laurent, a French actress best known to American audiences for her role in Tarantino’s Inglorious Bastards (2009), made her English language directorial debut with Galveston and did encourage extensive improvisation among the cast during filming but the story was not altered and, to me at least, still feels very much like the book (although some critics who tried to guess what had caused the use of Pizzolato’s pseudonym pointed to what they perceived to be “European” touches- all of which were present in the original work).

   Although somewhat mismarketed as an action thriller rather than a character- driven drama, Galveston did decent business and got mostly good reviews. It continues to be discovered on streaming platforms (largely thanks to True Detective- Pizzolatto still got a “Based on the novel by” credit) and its reputation has deservedly grown over the past couple of years.

   To conclude, it’s worth noting that Pizzolatto indirectly inspired the writing of this book. During the first UK lockdown, it was an Instagram post from the writer- picturing him working on various books and scripts in his garden with the caption “Do the time, don’t let it do you”- that got me off my arse to write something given the rare opportunity of so much free time.

   Like the happy and successful older Tiffany that visits Roy in Galveston, something good can come out of the worst situations. Back then, I’d hoped that we’d start properly rewarding those who really do the work we most rely on (binmen rather than bankers) but early talk of that was soon replaced with empty platitudes. On a personal level though, I’d urge anyone else stuck indoors to try writing, painting or something similar- if only for your own sanity if you’re normally used to staying busy.