Since his biopic Milk, director Gus Van Sant hasn’t been involved with many buzzy projects. That luck may change with Dead Man’s Wire, a comic crime caper that marks a brilliant return for Sant.

A bizarre, public kidnapping carried out by disgruntled developer Tony Kiritsis (Bill Skarsgard of the modern It series) is the talk of the nation, as Kiritsis holds mortgage broker Richard Hall (Dacre Montgomery of Netflix’s Stranger Things) at gunpoint. Richard, filling in for his father M.L. Hall (Al Pacino), is terrified by the situation but, at the same time, he’s almost more intimidated by Tony himself; a clumsy crook who perceives himself as an unconventional folk hero despite his uncontrollable temper. Tony rides off this power trip, as he anticipates monetary compensation by the Meridian Mortgage company along with an apology.

Skarsgard’s interpretation of Tony’s desperation teeters on the absurd, resulting in a performance that’s peculiar, funny, sad, and a little scary. But no matter how Skarsgard makes us feel, Dead Man’s Wire always takes him seriously. Likewise for Montgomery’s Richard. We can chuckle at his disbelief and sympathize with his concerns, but the character still carries enough weight that prevents him from being a caricature. The whole movie is reminiscent of the Coen Brothers’ Fargo, which is a huge compliment.

Polishing off this fascinating flick is an interesting viewpoint for the audience that feels faithful to the period; alternating between a distant comprehension of the events through news cameras and an intimate experience from inside Tony’s apartment. While these various perspectives may sound like Gus Van Sant trying to collect style points, these changes help break up the pace and sets a high watermark for other biopics to beat.

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Addison Wylie: @AddisonWylie