Mitchell Beaupre’s review published on Letterboxd:
Jane Got a Gun is a film whose troubled production was so studiously documented in the press that its actual release at this point feels like nothing more than an afterthought. Between the firing of original director Lynne Ramsay after she failed to show up to the first day of shooting (promptly being replaced by Warrior director Gavin O'Connor), the rotating door of stars that saw Michael Fassbender, Jude Law and Bradley Cooper all sign on for roles and then drop out (not to mention Joel Edgerton switching from one role to another), and the bankruptcy of studio Relativity, it seemed like this little western that could was never going to see the light of day. Finally, it arrives in theaters in the doldrums of January, a clear sign that new studio The Weinstein Company didn’t really have much interest in giving it a proper push to the masses. Jane Got a Gun went from hot topic in Hollywood to a limp noodle, where its fifteen minutes of fame expired long before it was actually released a whopping three years after that notorious first day of filming. The irony behind all of this is that, were it not for the internet age allowing us such a detailed level of knowledge into the behind the scenes drama of every film, you would have had no idea that things weren’t business as usual in the making of the project, given the relatively ordinary result.
Usually when a film is plagued by as much production trouble as Jane Got a Gun, the result falls into one of two categories. On the one extreme, you get the kind of cinematic masterpiece that is Apocalypse Now, an indication that the madness behind the scenes was all part of the method to bring about something bold and original in a way we’ve never seen done before. On the other end of the spectrum, there’s something like last year’s attempted reboot Fantastic Four, where the trouble is pasted all over the final product, an inconsistent mess that puts a stain on the canon of everyone involved. Jane Got a Gun strangely doesn’t fall into either camp, instead existing more as the kind of mid-level genre picture that you’ve seen plenty of times before. If it weren’t for all the talk about what went into the making of the movie, you’d likely forget about it not too long after you finished watching. Which isn’t to say that it’s a bad film, because it’s far from that, just that it’s not a particularly noteworthy one, in either a positive or negative way. Gavin O'Connor came on board in the eleventh hour and brought his workmanlike grit and professionalism to help save this film from falling off the rails, putting together a perfectly acceptable picture that won’t be a blemish on anyone’s record, but won’t stand out either.
The plot is pretty simple. After Bill (Noah Emmerich) returns home with bullet wounds and a warning that a ruthless gang led by Colin (Ewan McGregor) are coming, his wife Jane (Natalie Portman) is forced to turn to her ex-lover Dan (Joel Edgerton) for help in defending the life she’s made with another man. After first turning her down, Dan’s good nature gets the better of him and he saddles up to help her get ready for the big fight that’s coming. The two squabble as they make their preparations, while the backstory that set everyone into their current places is periodically revealed through flashbacks. It’s not an especially exciting means by which to deliver this story, yet putting together those pieces of each character’s past is the most engaging way that the script was able to give us all of the information that we needed without having the film come to a dead halt when we finally caught up to their present situation, something which would have likely happened had it all been told chronologically. Slowly, seeing Jane and Dan reveal more of their lost history to one another (filling in the gaps as to why they were separated) gives the audience a deeper investment in each one, and even Bill gets his moment in the sun when he turns out to not be the lowlife coward that Dan (and likely the audience) initially presumed him to be.
Jane Got a Gun delivers enough genre thrills to keep the entertainment value at an appreciable hum, but more than anything it’s a character piece, given life by a wonderful cast. Edgerton having to switch roles from the villain to the hero was a blessing in disguise, as he’s perfectly suited for playing this handsome brooding loner, settling into his new part with an intoxicating swagger that makes you wish the western genre had more opportunities for him to strap up (it’s been over a decade since his last western, the little seen Heath Ledger vehicle Ned Kelly). Portman is surprisingly effective at capturing the self-reliant fury of a woman who has done whatever it’s taken to protect her family and make a life for herself, kicking ass and taking names with the best of them as she unleashes hell on the men who threaten her. Meanwhile, McGregor is clearly having a ball stepping into a rare villain role, relishing the opportunity to go full camp with his mustache-twirling malice that thankfully doesn’t feel too out of place in a film that’s pitched more towards pulp entertainment than the macho seriousness that traditionally has defined the genre, although his fellow outlaws Boyd Holbrook and Rodrigo Santoro do turn it up a bit too high. All in all, Jane Got a Gun managed to easily avoid being one of those disastrous productions that resulted in a hilariously catastrophic film, with O'Connor and his cast making sure that things remained on track no matter what obstacles had to be overcome behind the scenes. Were you to watch this decades down the road, you’d be surprised to find out how much chaos occurred on the way to releasing what is a completely ordinary, perfectly enjoyable little western.