A house in flames. A figure explodes out of a second story window, fire licking his back as he stumbles into the darkness. The scene changes. An old man tethers a mule to a cart and rides into town. His hair and beard are as wild and untamed as his eyes. The folks in town all cast wary looks at him, trying not to make eye contact. This man is the town kook, a legendary hermit coming down from his place in the woods. And he’s ready to die, or as he puts it, Get Low.

Screen legend Robert Duvall is Felix Breazeale, a famous hermit who history notes for having thrown his own funeral, just so he could be in attendance. Lacking much in the way of actual historical documentation on the how or why of the event, the writers instead built a fascinating character study entrenched in love, remorse, regret, and redemption. After 40 years of self-imposed exile and decades of rumors and speculation, this famed hermit decides to throw a lavish party in which anyone who has a tale to tell about him is welcome. When the local priest refuses to take part in a living funeral, a struggling mortician and funeral parlor owner (played hilariously by Bill Murray) takes up the cause and sets out to throw the wildest funeral anyone has ever seen. But along the way there are speedbumps — Felix is crotchety and unpredictable and has few friends left after whatever it is that did him in 40 years before — and when Felix offers to raffle off his land to funeral attendees, excitement reaches a fever pitch that brings with it a whole mess of additional problems.

The film is touching, deeply moving, and on occasion very funny. The script is solid, and the film is directed well by first timer Aaron Schneider; Get Low is certainly well worth seeing for both those reasons. But what the film will best be known for is its performances. Fueled by smoldering work from three of our greatest living actors, Get Low gets a lot of mileage out of very little. Duvall is incredible, giving another amazing, once-a-decade performance that rivals his work in the astounding The Apostle. Bill Murray, on the other hand, may have just finally earned himself an Oscar for next year’s Best Supporting Actor category — at times he’s unbelievably funny, even while being quite grim. And rounding out the trinity of talent, Sissy Spacek brings her down-home charm to the role of a jilted lover, pining once more for the man who broke her heart — while systematically breaking ours. Even Lucas Black, better known for his strong jaw line and rugged looks than his ability to spit out a line, manages to impress with a depth of character we’re unaccustomed to seeing from him. Make no mistake: this film is a character piece that will garner praise and accolades based more upon the work of its cast than for the film itself. That’s not to say that the film is in any way flawed, but the performances are so strong and so indelible that the work it is going toward doesn’t quite live up to the same Oscar-caliber quality.

Overall, the film is charming, sweet, and a bit on the adorable side — even if it is entirely about a man planning for his death. But it is a work well worth checking out. Made on a paltry $7.5 million dollar budget, I can’t imagine this not seeing some sort of Oscar push release in the fall, where it could more than make its initial investment back. Keep this one in mind and eventually on your calendars; it’s an absolute must-see for Duvall or Murray fans and anyone who has ever had a bad word to say about Lucas Black.

Grade: A-

Tags: bill murray, get low, robert duvall, sxsw film festival