The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

THE BALLAD OF BUSTER SCRUGGS, at a little over two hours, tells six stories, united only by their imaginative take on traditional tales from lore of the American West and on their offbeat tone. Each is in a different setting with its own complex, often unexpected characters. Luck — both good and bad — plays a significant role in a number of the tales. In the title story, Buster Scruggs (Tim Blake Nelson) is a famous gunfighter who sings and shoots and smiles his way into the heart of a dusty town filled with outlaws and cutthroats. James Franco in “Near Algodones” is a bank robber who finds himself on the wrong end of a gun. “Meal Ticket” tells the story of an itinerant “Impresario” (Liam Neeson) taking his fantastical “show” to isolated outposts. Tom Waits, as “The Prospector,” lights up the most picturesque vistas of the West with his enduring passion and patience as he pans for gold. Zoe Kazan is Alice, “The Gal Who Got Rattled,” on a long wagon train heading to a new life in Oregon. And finally, “The Mortal Remains,” with five outrageous passengers, takes place entirely in a stagecoach with an array of mouthy folks who have stridently different points of view.