Baldwin's 'Rust' gets muted release

»How do you plan the rollout of a film that became notorious for an on-set tragedy?

- JULIA JACOBS

The ill-fated Western Rust has been trying to figure that out. The movie was finally released on Friday, 3 1/2 years after its cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, was shot and killed by a real bullet fired from an old-fashioned revolver that its star, Alec Baldwin, was rehearsing with on a set in New Mexico.

Now the film is finally coming out after years of lawsuits, investigations and two criminal trials, its rollout has been decidedly muted. Unable to find traction at better-known film festivals, Rust premiered last fall at a small cinematography festival in Poland.

Now, as it is being released in a limited number of theatres (with none so far in New York City) and on demand, it is forgoing the traditional red-carpet premiere, and Baldwin has not sat for any splashy interviews.

The filmmakers said their overriding goal in finishing the film and pushing for its release was to showcase the final work of Hutchins, who was a 42-year-old up-and-coming cinematographer when she was killed. And a legal settlement calls for some of the film's earnings to go to her husband and son.

"If I was to make a direct plea to someone about seeing the movie," said the film's director, Joel Souza, "I'd say that a lot of really good people worked really hard on finishing this movie to honour her."