München – Viggo Mortensen is an actor, musician, screenwriter and, since 2020, a director – preferably all at once. After his directorial debut “Falling”, his latest work of art is now coming to cinemas.
In “The Dead Don’t Hurt,” the “Lord of the Rings” star plays the Danish immigrant Holger, who falls in love with the mysterious Vivienne Le Coudy shortly before the start of the American Civil War.
Vicky Krieps plays outstandingly
The film is set around 1860 and is only superficially a western. At its core, it is about a strong woman who has to assert herself alone in a world dominated by men, played outstandingly by Vicky Krieps (“Corsage”).
Strong themes in the film are loneliness and reserve, but also a longing for love – without giving up on yourself. Vivienne has just gotten involved with Holger, hesitantly, partly because she finds it difficult to open her heart to other people. They want to build their future in a log cabin away from a small town in the middle of nowhere.
But soon after, Holger makes a momentous decision: he goes to war. Vivienne stays behind, angry and disappointed. Left to her own devices, she has to defend herself against men who are all convinced that the law of the strongest is on their side. And when in doubt, they resort to weapons and do not shy away from lying.
Viggo Mortensen takes his time
Mortensen, who also wrote the screenplay, tells the story sensitively, stirringly and with many poetic moments. He takes his time to develop the story and give the characters depth. Both Holger and Vivienne carry secrets and old wounds with them that you want to explore.
But the other characters also arouse curiosity, such as the villain Weston Jeffries, convincingly played by Solly McLeod. He is the son of the richest man in the small town and feels like the uncrowned ruler. Drinking, fighting, shooting people – for him, all without consequences. When Holger disappears, he sets his sights on Vivienne. He absolutely wants her, by force if necessary.
McLeod plays him as a macho, whose brutal facade hides a great deal of insecurity. It’s not an easy task for the 24-year-old, but he masters it brilliantly. A scene in which Weston is bullied by his father made it easier for him to get closer. “You can see that Weston shows a certain vulnerability or weakness and is no longer just the strongest, that helped me a lot,” says the young actor.
Carefully developed roles
Mortensen also meticulously developed small roles such as the piano player in the saloon, who is actually a virtuoso and doesn’t fit in at all in the provincial town. “You could make your own film about Claudio,” he says. “He’s far too good a piano player to play that old piano in that saloon for so long.” Was it love? After all, he has a wife and a daughter and, together with his family, becomes an important support for Vivienne.
In the end, there are many small stories that come together to form a complex whole in “The Dead Don’t Hurt”. It is about dreams, hopes, disappointments, fears, injuries, lust for power and the joy of cruelty.
Nothing is a given, that’s the message of the film. Peace, love and happiness have to be worked for and not everything always turns out well in the end. Not even for Holger.
Film music composed by Mortensen
The film, which was shot primarily in Durango, Mexico, finds poetic words and impressive images for the very human narrative. The music, which Mortensen composed himself and played on the piano, is also beautiful, in reference to the time.
He says the music was created long before filming. He played the appropriate music for individual scenes to the actors on the set to convey the mood he wanted. “The music should feel like part of the story and not distract from it,” was his wish.
Anyone who wants to can certainly discover parallels to today, for example when it comes to the weapons that are part of the self-image of the men in the film. Or people who use lies and intrigues to grab power. This is not the intention. “As a director, I don’t have to say that I want to convey a message. I just tried to tell a story,” says Mortensen.
“But if a story is well told and you have good actors and you believe that the characters are real people with real problems and disagreements and conflicts and obstacles, then of course you will compare them to their time.”
