Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to visit Pawhuska, Oklahoma, and observe the filming of Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, a true story based on the book of the same name, which details the "Reign of Terror" in OK in the 1920s, where Osage Indians were murdered in an elaborate conspiracy that involved stealing the rights to oil deposits on their land.
Pawhuska is a small and somewhat touristy town--thanks to the ubiquitous presence of the “Pioneer Woman,” Ree Drummond, who utilized the internet to parlay a life living on a prairie ranch into a considerable merchandising empire. The Drummond Ranch itself has a much longer history of influence in the area—one could say that effective “branding” definitely takes on more than one meaning here (I will say though that my breakfast at The Mercantile—a Ham, Egg and Green Chili Sandwich—was pretty incredible!).
Pawhuska played a major role in the story behind Killers of the Flower Moon, such as the trial of Ernest Burkhart at the courthouse that still stands on a hill, overlooking the town’s main business district.
However, many of the tragic events in real life occurred around the nearby towns of Grey Horse, Ralston, and Fairfax. When I visited the set, I noticed that the main street of Pawhuska had actually been converted to look like “old” Fairfax of the era (note "Fairfax" signs).
The scene being shot that day was clearly an interior sequence (which may or may not have been set in Fairfax)—what I observed were extras in period costumes walking in an endless loop on one side of the street, clearly so that they could be seen briefly in the background through the windows while filming.
Later I noticed that other parts of Pawhuska were also changed to Fairfax, such as this train depot, where they may or may not have yet filmed (it looks like its the middle of nowhere, but it's only two blocks from the heart of town).
I also noticed that they were busy prepping still another building just a couple blocks away ("Big Hill Trading") for the next round of filming.
It gradually became clear to me that Scorsese’s crew was treating Pawhuska (a tiny place, even by Oklahoma standards) less as a filming location and more as its own personal old Hollywood backlot, modifying different corners of the town as necessary to fill in for a range of possible locations.
One image I will never be able to unsee when the film itself premieres: the extras in period costume walking to set, complete with, let's just say, "era appropriate" masks!
Another image I'll never unsee: earlier that same morning, before arriving in Pawhuska, I first drove through the actual towns of Ralston . . .
and Fairfax:
It was eerie to juxtapose these economically depressed towns as they stand today with their brief cinematic “revival” just a few miles down the road, and I couldn’t help but think that it was symbolic of the complex relationship this land has had with the many, many people--some with more local ties than others--who’ve benefited from it over the years.
Comments