I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

This is a strange and wonderful movie. Be patient with the slow start and you will be rewarded with a rich and complex story filled with outstanding performances and an incredible finish. It is an offbeat tale with a humorous tinge but is in no way a "comedy." The cast is first rate. The story is...well, creative and different. It is set in the early to mid twentieth century when older men had more in common with a mule than an automobile and young men could turn a wrench but might not recognize a bridle. Honor, honesty and dignity were valued. It was a turning point in modern American history. The cinematography is brilliant with exceptionally well done scenes in lantern light only. Great story, well filmed and quality performances by accomplished actors. An all around winner and a must watch.

A main purpose of watching this indie film is to make my own decision if Robert Duvall has received a cold-shoulder for another Oscar-nomination, as it proves the film without any question is Mr. Duvall's personal acting vehicle while the film itself is a rather hit-and-miss debut for director Aaron Schneider.The entire film is being engulfed by the ominous tension to unveil what "on earth" had happened to the old gaffer who lives a secluded life like a prisoner in his own jail-house for 40 years. While using his own (alive) funeral as a stunt to gather more attention from local people (plus a more lucrative chance to inherit his property after his death). First of all, the visual techniques are prosaic and so is the screenplay, by which many characters are undermined (e.g. Bill Murray and Lucas Black), especially for Murray, his role could have been excavated more since the fodder seems ample and quaint. The revelation feel contrived and not worthy of all the hyperbole, and so is the funeral, which looks more like a hasty, confessional convention plus a glimpse of a mannered lottery. Not only the unearthed truth does not live up to all the expectation, the ending is also somewhat bland in which things ensue in a rash motion and the final pathos is being compromised. So the plucky and ultra-venerable cast is the backbone of this otherwise dreary indie, Mr. Duvall is excellent enough to dominate all the curmudgeon foibles, and the showboating speech at the funeral is a rare heart-felting rendition, he is currently my No. 5 in the leading actor list (but I haven't seen Jeff Bridge's Oscar-winning CRAZY HEART 2009 yet).Veteran Murray and Spacek also has their moments which may not be assure a front-runner buzz, but an unbending glare cannot be dismissed.

Most times, as the cliché goes, the journey is just as important as the destination. These true words perfectly suit GET LOW, a Robert Duvall, Bill Murray flick helmed by first-timer Aaron Schneider. Duvall plays Felix Bush, a self-imposed hermit living out a self-imposed penance for a personal crime committed some 40 years back. Felix is nearing the end of his life and finally becomes curious at what the townsfolk think of him. Bill Murray and type-cast good ole boy Lucas Black play funeral directors who decide to help Felix throw a funeral while he's still alive. Those in attendance get to enter a raffle to win his incredible parcel of land. But what happens, as Felix prepares for death, is his acceptance of life.Duvall is a master at playing quiet, contemplative figures allowing his body language and facial expressions to tell the eloquent story of the script. GET LOW, as OPEN RANGE and THE APOSTLE did before, provides plenty of those quiet, introspective moments allowing the audience to see the pain of the character and wonder at his thoughts. The only criticality of the film is that Murray is rarely allowed to truly get going as the off-beat comedic genius he is (Wes Anderson, it appears, is the only current filmmaker that can give Murray full control of the open throttle). Much of the movie's comedy is attributed to him, but the character's secondary role to that of Duvall cannot shine as bright as it ought to. Also, for a film where stories are to be told of the not-quite-deceased, not many are told. Save Felix's own. But perhaps that's enough.GET LOW is a good story and a great character piece; moving and, perhaps, even redemptive, but not in a prime-time Disney-fied way. Instead, Duvall gets to say his... peace. After all, before one can soar high, one must get low.

At the surface, "Get Low" converges upon the guilt-ridden life of Felix Bush, who has decided to alienate himself for over forty years in an attempt to pay for his mysterious and supposedly unpardonable crime. This reclusive lifestyle leads many folks from the nearby town to believing in a plethora of stories wherein Felix Bush is disreputably or villainously portrayed. Willing to confess to the whole community and wishing to end once and for all the tall tales that plague his name, Felix decides to arrange a funeral for himself by hiring Quinn funeral services (owned by Frank Quinn- Bill Murray) and incites the townspeople to attend by holding a raffle whose winner would inherit this pariah's shelter and land. At the funeral, Felix reveals the reason for his self-seclusion while the majority of his community tediously listens and counts down the minutes until the anxiously-awaited lottery. Brief instances later, the physical death of Felix Bush brings another funeral to life, this time with fewer but truer attendants to bid adieu to this curious hermit who died twice. "Getting lower" into the ground unveils the critique that is launched against society's unfortunate tendency to carelessly mold any type of hearsay into unchallenged fact and spread it from mind to mind, further intensifying the lie spawned by community. The initiative Felix Bush has of planning a funeral for himself while inviting all individuals who had been contaminated with one of society's lies about himself is symbolic not of his own death but the death of care and altruism that exists within the life of most individuals who exist passively in community. The rapaciousness of society is visibly accentuated by the stolid reaction of the townspeople who attend and listen to the heartfelt confession from Felix Bush and highlighted even further by their exclusive dissemination of joy only at the time of announcing the results of the raffle, which reveals their truly egotistical intentions. The contrasting alternation between the lifestyles of a common citizen from the town like Frank Quinn who seeks the profit motive and the reclusive one lead by Felix Bush shows how a life devoid of societal pressures revolves around learning to harmoniously coexist with nature's gifts- represented by the forest-covered location of Felix's shelter and his amiable interaction with the mule- and focuses on reflecting about one's past actions and learning to, above all, pardon oneself first. The revelation of Felix's darkest secret of being incapable to rescue the love of his life from the devastating flames ignited by her draconian husband emphasizes even further the pure and benign nature of an individual surviving outside the grip of communal existence. The bottom line: "Get Low" succeeds in grasping the viewers' attention right from the beginning by introducing a mysterious pariah that supposedly harms others in a variety of ways. Robert Duvall's talented performance exquisitely contributes to the audience's entertainment and the mystery sustaining this film. Though the middle acts focuses its efforts on rather tedious character interactions and Felix's secret may fail to impress those expecting a mind-blowing hit, "Get Low" is a film teeming with meaning that will never get low marks.