This true story inspired Scorsese's 'Killers of the Flower Moon'
Filmmaking legend Martin Scorsese's recent crime epic Killers of the Flower Moon will be released in Indian theaters on Friday. Starring Scorsese's frequent collaborator Leonardo DiCaprio, Lily Gladstone, Jesse Plemons, and Robert De Niro, the over three-hour-long epic was earlier screened at the Cannes Film Festival, where it received a nine-minute-long standing ovation. Did you know KTFM is based on a haunting true story?
The movie is based on this non-fiction book
The film is based on The New Yorker journalist David Grann's non-fiction book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI, which was published in 2017. The book chronicles the series of cold-blooded killings of extremely affluent members of the Osages (an American Indian tribe) in the 1920s since the Osages had control over multiple profitable oil deposits.
Film is about the calculated erasure of a tribe
The central character is Mollie Burkhart, whose sister Anna becomes one of the first victims of the conniving series of deaths. The period of killing—between 1921 and 1926—was labeled the "Reign of Terror." Lack of technological advancements, rampant corruption in law enforcement departments, and the influence of local whites made the investigations arduous until Officer Tom White was handed the reins of the case.
Who was behind the cold-blooded killings?
Toward the end of the book, it's revealed that White and his associates (several undercover agents) discern that the criminals are hiding in plain sight. Burkhart's husband Ernest Burkhart and his extremely influential and powerful uncle William Hale were the two central perpetrators, with Hale having been the mastermind behind the erasure of Burkhart's family. The goal? The lucrative oil deposits and Burkhart's money.
Character guide: Who's playing whom in the drama
De Niro is playing Hale, while Plemons is playing Bureau of Investigation's Officer Tom White (BoI was a precursor to the FBI). Burkhart's role has been played by Gladstone, while DiCaprio has been roped in to play her husband, Ernest. Cara Jade Myers is essaying Burkhart's sister, Anna, while Steve Witting has donned the role of Dr. James Shoun, who conducted Anna's autopsy.
