---
title: "Hell or High Water"
year: 2016
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/hell-or-high-water"
fi1m_id: "hell-or-high-water"
imdb_id: "tt2582782"
tmdb_id: 338766
wikidata_id: "Q20026847"
fi1m_score: 84
critics_score: 78
critics_reviews: 21
published: "2026-09-16"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:37:50.287736+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Hell or High Water (2016)

Directed by David Mackenzie · 1h 42m · MPA R · Western, Crime, Drama

## Identity

Hell or High Water

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/hell-or-high-water
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** hell-or-high-water
- **IMDb ID:** tt2582782
- **TMDB ID:** 338766
- **Wikidata ID:** Q20026847
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2582782/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/338766, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q20026847

**Fi1m score: 84** · Critics 78 from 21 reviews

*In a sentence:* Even the bank robbers in West Texas think the banks have taken things too far

> David Mackenzie’s *Hell or High Water* is a tense, funny crime film with unusually good company. Its four central performances make the familiar pursuit matter, though Taylor Sheridan’s script occasionally explains the hardship that the faces and places have already made clear.

## Synopsis

In contemporary West Texas, Toby Howard (Chris Pine) and his brother Tanner Howard (Ben Foster) rob banks with a score to settle. Texas Ranger Marcus Hamilton (Jeff Bridges) takes up the pursuit with fellow ranger Alberto Parker (Gil Birmingham). The brothers need to keep their plan moving while the rangers try to understand it well enough to stop them. Around the bank jobs, towns marked by poverty carry on with their business, and civilians offer opinions of their own. Each pair has to manage its differences while trying to stay ahead of the men on the other side.

## Review

*Hell or High Water* is a fine crime film that takes an interest in what people do between crimes. David Mackenzie gives the bank robberies their urgency, then allows conversations to last long enough for irritation, affection and worry to emerge. The contemporary West Texas setting matters because getting by is already difficult here, even before anyone starts breaking the law. The pursuit is familiar, but the people involved are good enough company to make us happy to follow it.

Toby Howard and Tanner Howard are brothers, and the film trusts that this brings obligations without making either man especially easy company. Chris Pine makes Toby Howard’s stake in the robberies feel personal before the plan is fully explained. Ben Foster supplies the friction, making their shared purpose feel liable to come apart in conversation. The affection survives disagreements that neither actor hurries to smooth over. We believe these men have been dealing with each other for years.

The pursuing rangers get as much attention, with Jeff Bridges playing Marcus Hamilton and Gil Birmingham playing Alberto Parker. We laughed at the insults, then felt a little sorry for the man delivering them. Jeff Bridges allows enough weariness into the performance to suggest someone who needs company but has forgotten how to ask for it. Gil Birmingham makes Alberto Parker’s patience feel finite, which keeps their exchanges from becoming a solo comedy routine.

Giles Nuttgens gives the bare West Texas landscape room to look uninviting, and the open country makes the people crossing it seem exposed. Tom Duffield’s production design gives the towns a worn, underfunded appearance that fits the resentment in the dialogue. The film notices that people still have business to conduct here, however little money there seems to be in it. Those surroundings help explain the anger at the banks without making the robberies seem harmless.

Jake Roberts keeps the pursuit moving while allowing room for the talk that makes it worth following. At 102 minutes, the film feels comfortably paced, with little sense of padding or a rush towards the next incident. Nick Cave and Warren Ellis supply music that strengthens the loneliness of the setting and makes the quieter stretches uneasy. The score helps the film stay tense even when nobody is doing much.

Taylor Sheridan occasionally pushes too hard to make sure the social point gets across, and the dialogue starts to sound rehearsed. Poverty and resentment are already visible in the towns and in the way these men treat each other; a further explanation can feel unnecessary. Some of the family history is a little too neatly fitted to the needs of the chase. These are noticeable faults, but the actors usually make the lines sound like something they have just thought to say.

As a modern Western, it finds plenty to do with a familiar pursuit, divided loyalties and men reluctant to admit how much they depend on one another. The danger has weight because David Mackenzie has given us time to enjoy their company, including the parts of it we would find tiresome across a table. There is little romance in its idea of the West, which suits people so short of choices. Choose it for an evening when the talk matters as much as the gunfire.

*Fi1m score 84, published 16 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics welcome Hell or High Water as a tense, dryly funny crime film whose familiar bank robberies and pursuit gain weight from the poverty of its West Texas setting. Praise centres on Taylor Sheridan’s dialogue, David Mackenzie’s assured pacing and a cast that makes the family loyalties and professional partnerships convincing. Jeff Bridges draws the most consistent attention for his weary, expressive Ranger, while Chris Pine earns praise for giving the brothers’ story emotional weight.

The disagreement concerns how much the film adds to its familiar material. Most reviews find its economic pressures persuasive and its characters nuanced; a small minority find the social commentary thin or the plotting too arranged. Time Out enjoys the old-fashioned pleasures but hears little new. The New Yorker is the sharp dissenter, finding the writing contrived and lifeless, though it shares the broader admiration for Bridges. The spread is wide, but approval predominates.

## Straight answers

**Is Hell or High Water worth watching?**

*Hell or High Water* is worth watching for anyone who likes a crime film where the talk matters as much as the gunfire, and we scored it 84. Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Jeff Bridges and Gil Birmingham make a familiar bank-robbery pursuit good company. Taylor Sheridan's script sometimes explains the poverty the towns have already shown us.

**How long is Hell or High Water, and what is it rated?**

*Hell or High Water* runs 1h 42m and is rated R by the MPA in the US. It is a western and crime film.

**Where can I watch Hell or High Water in the US?**

*Hell or High Water* is streaming on HBO Max, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and The Roku Channel in the US, and it is also available to rent from Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV from $3.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Hell or High Water, and is it suitable for children?**

*Hell or High Water* is a UK 15 and a US R, so it is not for children. It is a crime film about bank robbers pursued by Texas Rangers, with gunfire, danger that carries real weight and adult language throughout. Older teenagers used to Westerns and crime dramas should manage it; the squeamish will find it tense rather than gruelling.

**How does Hell or High Water compare to A Simple Plan?**

*Hell or High Water* is the warmer and funnier of the two, while [*A Simple Plan*](https://film.one/film/a-simple-plan) is the more painful. Both are crime stories about money that strains family loyalties, but Sam Raimi's film is a slow warning about greed and David Mackenzie's is a pursuit with better company. Choose the earlier film for a colder evening, this one when you want to enjoy the people.

**What should I watch after Hell or High Water?**

After *Hell or High Water*, try [*The Proposition*](https://film.one/film/the-proposition) (2005, Fi1m 79): A harsher Western where family loyalty makes an already brutal landscape worse. Then [*A Simple Plan*](https://film.one/film/a-simple-plan) (1998, Fi1m 86): Money offers an escape, then makes every family argument harder to settle.

### Reviews we read (28)

- **The AV Club**, A.A. Dowd (A-): The film makes one fall in love again with dialogue through its plainspoken wit and flavorful conversation. It delivers a skillful, offbeat neo-Western heist with relaxed yet urgent execution and strong character work. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/from-the-writer-of-sicario-comes-the-terrific-flavorfu-1798188568)
- **Vulture** (90/100, inferred): It is a rare humanist Western where finality is the true villain, offering broad scale and deep feeling in a haunting neo-Western with a terrible clarity and one of the greatest final scenes of any Western. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/2016/08/review-the-haunting-western-hell-or-high-water.html)
- **Empire**, Jimi Famurewa (80/100, inferred): The critic praises the film as a taut, tense neo-Western that effectively blends old and new elements in its depiction of Texan cops and robbers. Bridges' performance is highlighted as a standout, bringing weary vulnerability to his role. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/hell-high-water-review/)
- **Financial Times**, Raphael Abraham (80/100, inferred): David Mackenzie’s powerful neo-Western paints a vivid portrait of disenfranchised America. The script is sharply sardonic and the overall mood is sober and elegiac. [Read](https://www.ft.com/content/a429ad92-cd69-11e6-864f-20dcb35cede2)
- **Little White Lies**, Manuela Lazic (3/4/4): Jeff Bridges gives his best performance in years in this timely crime caper from David Mackenzie. The critic praises the realistic modern Texas setting marked by poverty, the sarcastic humour from civilians and authorities, and the subversion of heist conventions in favour of a broader critique of capitalism. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/hell-or-high-water)
- **Radio Times**, Damon Wise (4/5): British director David Mackenzie masters modern Americana like a native with this rustic noir that invokes the spirit of the Coen brothers. The critic praises the familiar story being very well told, with snappy dialogue, three top-notch performances and a great dustbowl soundtrack. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-cdzot0/hell-or-high-water/)
- **Slant Magazine** (80/100, inferred): Sheridan's screenplay twists genre conventions while the stark atmosphere and intimate character focus keep the action on a muted emotional keel, building to a messy, bloody conclusion that ruptures a delicate social ecosystem. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/hell-or-high-water/)
- **The Telegraph**, Tim Robey (4/5): Give Mackenzie this strong script and his game is raised, delivering straight-down-the-highway momentum, interesting stakes, and textured character work. It is a chase movie with a moral conscience that is neither obvious nor one-sided. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/05/16/hell-or-high-water-is-a-chase-movie-with-a-conscience---review/)
- **The Times**, Edward Porter (★★★★): Mackenzie embraces the desolate Texas setting with relish and has a good cast. Taylor Sheridan’s script makes good on the potential with an interesting motive for the bank jobs. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/film-reviews-hell-or-high-water-and-captain-fantastic-lsfgc2w8w)
- **Evening Standard**, Charlotte O'Sullivan (75/100, inferred): The review finds the film engaging despite a conventional plot, crediting strong characterizations and sly direction for its appeal. Performances by Bridges and Pine are singled out as outstanding and Oscar-worthy. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/hell-or-high-water-film-review-how-s-this-for-true-grit-a3340826.html)
- **Film Comment**, Michael Sragow (70/100, inferred): The critic finds Jeff Bridges the standout delight in an otherwise compromised story, praising his effortless portrayal of the Texas Ranger. He notes the director's work is handsome and tactful but not deeply probing. [Read](https://www.filmcomment.com/deep-focus-jeff-bridges-hell-high-water/)
- **Time Out**, Tom Huddleston (3/5): This dusty Texas crime story is well-worn but its simple pleasures hold up in an old-fashioned yet enjoyable heist thriller that adds a dash of 21st-century politics. The critic singles out the memorable moments, most involving Jeff Bridges hurling insults, while noting not a great deal new to say. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/hell-or-high-water)
- **The New Yorker**, Richard Brody (30/100, inferred): The critic sees the film as flat and schematic, driven by a screenwriter’s keyboard rather than lived-in action or dialogue, with the main respite being Jeff Bridges’s expressive performance. It faults the contrived family-history elements and overall lack of vitality despite strong casting. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/the-exemplary-badness-of-war-dogs-and-hell-or-high-water)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Glenn Whipp: The critic calls it a gripping heist drama attuned to outsider politics, with brothers robbing banks to settle a score while evoking empathy for their motives amid West Texas desolation. It singles out the screenplay’s balance of thriller, character study, and social commentary, plus the director’s brisk pacing. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-hell-high-water-review-20160807-snap-story.html)
- **Screen Daily**: David Mackenzie delivers his most commercially appealing and one of his most fully achieved films yet, working from an expertly honed screenplay. The critic singles out the intertwining of two mismatched buddy relationships, especially the one between the rangers played by Jeff Bridges and Gil Birmingham, and the vivid support casting and dialogue. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/hell-or-high-water-cannes-review/5104048.article)
- **Sight and Sound**, Trevor Johnson: Hard times make hard desperados in David Mackenzie's sage, post-recessionary Texan crime thriller. The critic praises the thorough investment in sense of place and the strong performances, especially Jeff Bridges' masterly late-period character study and the world-weary bond between the siblings. [Read](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/film-week-hell-or-high-water)
- **The Guardian**: The critic praises this heavyweight, cynical thriller as a heist picture with satirical edge and a gloomy reverie about the Texan plain. Mackenzie’s direction and the cast deliver punch and maturity. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/may/16/hell-or-high-water-review-cannes-film-jeff-bridges-chris-pine)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, David Rooney: The film is a soulful outlaw tale with a socioeconomic perspective and a rich sense of place. It features strong performances from the leads in a modern Western thriller that imbues familiar types with humanity. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/hell-high-water-cannes-review-893095/)
- **The New York Times**, Jeannette Catsoulis (Critic’s Pick): The critic finds it an easygoing thriller set in a roasted West Texas landscape where the bank-robbing brothers’ plan unfolds gradually amid nonchalant characters. The film is praised for its unhurried cops-and-robbers tale that reveals the thieves’ smarter motives over time. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/12/movies/hell-or-high-water-review.html)
- **Variety**, Owen Gleiberman: The critic hails it as a thrillingly good, crackerjack drama of crime, fear, and brotherly love set in an authentic sun-roasted West Texas, merging crime-spree noir with family history. It praises the brilliant lead performances, especially Chris Pine’s breakthrough, and the director’s gripping independent production. [Read](https://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/cannes-film-review-hell-or-high-water-chris-pine-jeff-bridges-1201775089/)
- **Den of Geek**, Don Kaye (5/5): The critic calls it one of the best films of the year, a tense modern-day Western full of desperation and strong performances from the leads. He highlights the rich socio-economic backdrop and the nuanced characters caught between family loyalty and systemic pressures. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/hell-or-high-water-review/)
- **Collider**, Brian Formo (A-): The critic calls it one of the best films of the year, praising its thoughtful screenplay and career-high performances from the leads. They single out the believable bond between the brothers for adding meaningful history to the script. [Read](https://collider.com/hell-or-high-water-review/)
- **Deadline**, Pete Hammond (85/100, inferred): The critic calls the film a must-see smart and intelligent thriller that mixes entertainment with something to think about. He singles out the relevant contemporary issues raised alongside strong performances, especially from Chris Pine. [Read](https://deadline.com/2016/08/hell-or-high-water-review-chris-pine-jeff-bridges-ben-foster-1201799919/)
- **Consequence** (80/100, inferred): The critic praises it as a thrilling, tense, and weirdly funny heist film with a tight script that builds a rich milieu and mines genuine laughs from local culture and practicalities. They single out the score and the sense of isolation for enhancing the dread and character depth. [Read](https://consequence.net/2016/08/film-review-hell-or-high-water/)
- **HeyUGuys**, Jo-Ann Titmarsh (4/5): The critic finds the film a solid cops-and-robbers tale that stays true to traditional storytelling while depicting the disenfranchised with nuance. Strong performances from the leads, particularly Jeff Bridges, are highlighted alongside the script's clear-eyed view of consequences. [Read](https://www.heyuguys.com/hell-or-highwater-review/)
- **The Skinny**, Josh Slater-Williams (★★★★): The critic praises the screenplay for adding depth and social commentary beyond a simple genre exercise, along with the vivid Texas landscapes and Chris Pine's standout performance. He deems it one of the finest recent American crime films. [Read](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/hell-or-high-water)
- **The Wrap**, Robert Abele (80/100, inferred): The critic finds it a witty and surprisingly wise slice of Lone Star unlawfulness with righteous criminality and pokey humor. He singles out Jeff Bridges' master-class performance as the veteran Ranger alongside the strong ensemble and craftsman-like direction. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/hell-or-high-water-review/)
- **The Playlist**, Nikola Grozdanovic (B): The review praises the film's entertaining caper elements, Coens-like colorful characters, and balance of humor with deeper themes of generational loss and modern America. Strong side performances and Bridges' standout work are singled out for making it a personality-driven ride. [Read](https://theplaylist.net/hell-or-high-water-is-a-coens-esque-caper-with-personality-zest-review-20160811/)

## Details

- **Director:** David Mackenzie
- **Director:** David Mackenzie
- **Writer:** Taylor Sheridan
- **Cinematography:** Giles Nuttgens
- **Editor:** Jake Roberts
- **Music:** Nick Cave, Warren Ellis
- **Production design:** Tom Duffield
- **Costume design:** Malgosia Turzanska
- **Producer:** Peter Berg, Carla Hacken, Sidney Kimmel
- **Cast:** Jeff Bridges as Marcus Hamilton; Chris Pine as Toby Howard; Ben Foster as Tanner Howard; Gil Birmingham as Alberto Parker; Marin Ireland as Debbie Howard; Kevin Rankin as Billy Rayburn; Dale Dickey as Elsie; William Sterchi as Mr. Clauson
- **Runtime:** 1h 42m
- **Certificate (MPA):** R
- **Release (the US):** 26 August 2016
- **Genres:** Western, Crime, Drama
- **Also in:** [Best Picture winners](https://film.one/collections/oscar-best-picture.md) (Nominee, 2016); [Golden Globe Best Drama winners](https://film.one/collections/golden-globe-drama.md) (Nominee, 2016)
- **Budget:** $12 million
- **Box office:** $38 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igD-fXiHRRY

## Where to watch in the US

- HBO Max: streaming
- Hulu: add-on, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd
- The Roku Channel: add-on, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, uhd
- Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, uhd
- Apple TV: buy $14.99, hd

*Checked 2026-09-16.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, HU, IE, IN, IT, JP, KR, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PA, SE, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 2017: Best Film Editing (nominated); Best Picture (nominated); Best Supporting Actor (nominated); Best Writing, Original Screenplay (nominated)

## If you liked this

- *The Friends of Eddie Coyle* (1973): Another patient crime story about men whose working lives leave them few choices.
- *The Proposition* (2005), Fi1m 79: A harsher Western where family loyalty makes an already brutal landscape worse. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-proposition.md)
- *A Simple Plan* (1998), Fi1m 86: Money offers an escape, then makes every family argument harder to settle. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/a-simple-plan.md)
- *The Aura* (2005): An Argentinian crime film with patient observation and an increasingly uncomfortable robbery scheme.
- *Le Cercle Rouge* (1970): For the careful pursuit, the professional routines and the suspicion that escape is temporary.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/hell-or-high-water