The Mule (2019)

Rating: 7/10
Genre: Drama
Related Titles: Gran Torino, True Crime, End of Watch
By Leanne Harragan

Facing foreclosure on his business, broke horticulturalist Eart Stone takes a job...for a Mexican cartel. His fast found success leads him to bigger and bigger shipments. When his choices start to weigh on his mind, he has to right those wrongs before the law catches up with him. 

Clint Eastwood has produced quite the film here. It's not especially original or as deep as it's perhaps intended to be, but that doesn't take away from the fact that it's a perfectly enjoyable watch. It's pretty much what the title suggests it is, The Mule follows the journey of a man, a drug mule for the cartel who has to face up to the problems in his life.

While it's definitely been seen before that doesn't mean that this tale isn't an enjoyable one. Eastwood starring in, directing and producing this at the age of 88 is pretty impressive. He is the star of the film and is constantly on screen - for a man of this age, I consider that pretty amazing. He really brings the character of Earl Stone to life, with the fragile look about him, the nature of the way he walks, even the way his shirts and jackets hang from his skinny frame. 

There are plenty of similarities that I recognised with last years The Old Man and the Gun, in that it's an older gentleman committing and getting away with crimes purely because of politeness and niceties that leave him at the bottom of the suspect rung. There's even a scene in The Mule, where Earl is talking and advising the DEA agent working to hunt him down, this is completely parallel to the scene in The Old Man and the Gun. 

Beyond being a drug mule, there is plenty of character to Earl Stone, he has broken bonds with his family after years of being the absent husband, father and grandfather. He continues to be a keen horticulturalist even after the internet bankrupted his flower shop. He is a well developed character and it's quite hard to take him in a negative light despite his crimes as he constantly uses his wealth and sway with the cartel for good. Earl also continues to help everyone around him, stopping to help a stranded family change a tyre, advising a group of 'dykes on bikes' (this is for real the name they were given in the film🤣) about how to fix their bikes and taking the cartel out for pulled pork sandwiches - honestly everything he does makes him incredibly difficult to take as a criminal!

Eastwood has done a great job directing this as there a plenty of visually pleasing shots, especially those that involve flowers and there's a few of these! Considering there are only a few characters, he does very well to bring the film to life with just Earl really. Despite it being aesthetically pleasing, there are a few moments where the film drags on a little and it definitely could have been shorter in places. 

Basically this is an age-old tale of the American Dream and the tough choice between family and work that sometimes has to be made. It's not especially original but it's worth a watch, it has some minor tension that could capture the attention of most cinema-goers. 

Rating: 7.5/10 

By Rebecca Mannick 

I really really enjoyed the Mule!! Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood showed his class and character by starring, directing and producing in this drug orientated movie. Eastwood plays Earl, a man who basically abandoned his family to focus on his gardening business. He was a very well respected man in his industry but in turn he neglected his role as a family man. As business draws to a close Earl packs up and turns to his family however they reject him sharpish. Approached by one of his granddaughters friends Earl naively starts to drive as a drug mule. Things start heating up as he is quick to become the most valued driver to the gangster ferrying thousands of dollars worth of drugs and weapons. 

The Mule very much reminded me of 'The Old Man and the Gun' both in the storyline and in that it draws to a close Robert Redford's career like this does Clint Eastwood's. They are tales of old men who keep getting away with criminal activity. What was so endearing about Earl as a character - was that at first he was totally unaware of what he was doing. - until he received a shed load of cash. It got interesting when the Mexican drug lords became interested in Earl - they were trying to test his loyalty and he even was invited to Mexico and met the Kingpin played by Andy Garcia. 

The casting of the movie was fantastic, you also had Bradley Cooper and Laurence Fishbourne who were apart of the DEA trying to track down Earl. That was the part of the movie which disappointed me the most. The hustle from the authorities was kind of lacking, and I didn't feel the spark between Earl and Colin Bates (Cooper) in terms of that drive and purpose in wanting to find the criminal.

On the whole I did really enjoy watching The Mule. The genre is something I do actually really enjoy and the character of Earl Stone made everything more enjoyable. It also teaches you about family and how in the end you do always need your family.