John Hillcoat, who directed The Road and The Proposition (Filmstalker review) is looking to a similar period and type of person once again in his latest film Lawless, a film that takes us to the times of the American Depression and a time that once again promises strong and violent characters.

What's especially surprising about the film is the lead pairing of Tom Hardy and Shia LaBeouf. Hardy is understandable, but this is a surprise role for LaBeouf and looks to be his on screen leap to adult acting. Goodbye giant robots, hello characterisation and emotional depth.

The cast of Lawless doesn't just include Tom Hardy and Shia LaBeouf, there's room amongst the leads for Gary Oldman, Jessica Chastain, Guy Pearce and Mia Wasikowska, and suddenly we're seeing a whole run of talented names and seeing that LaBeouf really is amongst a group of talent that could see his career take a drastic and well needed turn for the better.

Here's the short plot for Lawless:

Set in the Depression-era Franklin County, Virginia, a bootlegging gang is threatened by authorities who want a cut of their profits.

The film is adapted from Matt Bondurant's novel The Wettest Country in the World (Amazon.co.uk / Amazon.com) by Nick Cave who also wrote The Proposition (Filmstalker review), and with John Hillcoat directing you're sure to have a powerful film, and that's something that the trailer reinforces.

The trailer for Lawless comes through Yahoo Movies and First Showing:

Doesn't that look good?