Black Cowboys Stand Front and Center in

The Harder They Fall

by Kathia Woods

Black cowboys are not an outlier; they have been a part of the culture since its inception. So, when it was announced that Netflix would be releasing a western, there was a lot of excitement on the internet.  The Harder They Fall is a reimagined look at some unsung heroes. This is truly a full circle moment for the culture, coming from the mind of director Jeymes Samuel and produced by the legend Jay Z. 

The film centers on two outlaw gangs that are unpredictably intertwined. There is the Nate Love Gang lead by Nate Love portrayed charismatically by Jonathan Majors. Rinding by his side is Stagecoach Mary (Zazie Beetz), Jim Beckwourth (RJ Cyler), Cuffee (Danielle Deadwyler) and Bill Pickett (Edi Gathegi). 

Every outlaw most has a rival, and none is better than Rufus Buck (Idris Elba) who is the OG in the saga. His deeds are the reason our heroes are on this treacherous road. Joining his quest are Trudy Smith (Regina King), and Cherokee Bill (LaKeith Stanfield). The unicorn in this story is Bass Reeves (Delroy Lindo) a marshal who arrested the later but joins forces with Love to finally bring down the Rufus Buck Gang.

The fact that the story is entirely focused on Black characters is what makes this film so compelling. It's not a historical film, but it does provide some insight into the lives of Black Cowboys. The film did get one thing right: for these newly freed people, their lives were centered in Black Towns, for better or worse. They recognized that wealth and second chances could not be built on the newly granted freedom of the white man, but rather on economic empowerment, even if it was illegal. One can also tell that Director Jeymes Samuel was a huge fan of spaghetti westerns. The way shots were placed, the slow motion of the action, the gun slinging all harbor back to the Eastwood Sergio Leone films.

As for Jonathon Majors this is his film. Elba might be the bigger name but with The Harder They Fall Majors' cements that he is a leading man. In Nate Love we get a complex man that is on quest of revenge but also love. Two emotions that are on the opposite side of the spectrum.

The love part of Nate Love is supplied by Zazie Beetz. Rightfully there was some uproar about Beetz portraying a woman that in real life was curvy and dark skin however her and Majors are simply Eletric together.  Regina King continues to add to her icon status by portraying a true definition of a boss. Trudy is no one’s sidekick. LaKeith is equally strong in a quieter performance than the last time we saw him on the big screen.  

Two standout performances are Danielle Deadwyler as the gender bending Cuffee. She is fierce but endearing and RJ Cyler as Jim Beckworth is the comic relief that the film needed. He relishes being an outlaw and claims to be the fastest gun in the west. He’s a natural.

 The Harder They Fall is hopefully the beginning of the movie industry willing to make more westerns centering Black people. It’s part of our past as well as our present.