TIFF Review: Easy's Waltz Presents Nic Pizzolatto with a Strange, Awkward New Hollywood Imitation

      My friend Nick Newman, who serves as the Film Stage Managing Editor, uses the term "counterfeit money" to refer to certain films. Whether it’s The Batman or Ben Affleck’s body of work, this phrase aptly describes several titles that masquerade as authentic adult cinema while cutting corners on the stylistic flair or moral complexities that characterized genuine works from the 1970s. Easy’s Waltz, the directorial debut of Nic Pizzolatto, creator of True Detective, certainly fits this description. It presents itself as a somber New Hollywood character drama reminiscent of Bob Rafelson or John Cassavetes, with unintentionally amusing results, but its eccentricities make it more enjoyable than much of the typical big-budget studio fare.

      The main character, Easy (played by Vince Vaughn), is a Vegas lounge singer in his 50s, seemingly nearing the end of his career. Compounding his issues is his quasi-con artist younger brother, Sam (Simon Rex), whom Easy continues to support well into adulthood. The film starts to exhibit its quirks here. Wouldn’t it have made more sense to cast Vaughn as a Don Rickles-like Vegas comedian instead? Honestly, all of Vaughn’s musical performances, particularly his rendition of Ultravox’s “Vienna,” feel more like a spirited karaoke attempt than that of a seasoned performer. Nevertheless, Easy’s “talent” draws the attention of Mickey (Al Pacino), a seemingly mob-connected former artist who could provide the much-needed break for him and his band, The Grifters. Meanwhile, Sam's involvement with Mickey’s significantly younger girlfriend (Kate Mara) is bound to lead to trouble.

      It's significant that Easy’s Waltz features “Vienna,” a motif from Bret Easton Ellis’ recent work, in its soundtrack. Pizzolatto shares the same Gen X cynicism as his friend Ellis, which permeates the film with both sincerity and dullness. It’s nearly impossible not to zone out when an aging Al Pacino, reminiscent of Joe Biden, delivers a series of faux-profound monologues about aging. However, the theme of being pushed out in middle age (notably, Pizzolatto is the type who encouraged online review-bombing of the last season of True Detective) at least lends a bit of life to the film.

      That being said, the film feels peculiar as a Gen X piece, given that its narrative and structural awkwardness suggest it might have been crafted by someone much older. One wonders what Pizzolatto was thinking when he introduced the unfulfilled plotline of Easy going viral, with over two million views on YouTube, for a cover of Mike and the Mechanics’ “Silent Running.” In what reality does a mediocre lounge singer's cover of a subpar song garner significant online attention? Additionally, what stylistic intent is Pizzolatto pursuing when he juxtaposes Simon Rex printing QR codes with Vaughn performing a black-and-white version of “Little Drummer Boy”? These are the enigmas of Easy’s Waltz—solving them may not be fulfilling, but they do pique curiosity.

      Easy’s Waltz had its premiere at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.