No Country for Old Men
I saw this movie the day it came out in Chicago. But there's been so much talk about it since that I'm not sure what to talk about in this blog. There are so many thoughts and discussions I've had or heard on the film that I feel like whatever I mention I'll be treading ground everyone's already heard or feel like I'm leaving something out.
I will state that I'm extremely biased towards the Coen brothers. I love everything they've done, so at this point it's hard for me to just not simply love anything they do. Just knowing they made it puts a gleam around it in my mind that protects it from major criticism. But I think it's completely justified.
I will say that until I see this movie more times, it's not currently my favorite of their movies, but as it is, it's still a fucking fantastic movie. I think as their first strict adaptation it has to be evaluated in a different manner as well.
The film has no opening credits, and no non-diegetic music. This is something that different people may start to realize at different points during the movie. But once you do, you realize why you feel like the movie has so effectively made you feel like you were kind of just pushed into it without every really getting a hold on anything.
The very beginning is interesting in that it features narration with static shots of sparse Texas landscapes, exactly the same as the beginning of their first film, Blood Simple. And I almost feel as though some of those shots are of the exact same places. In this way it's hard to not think that the Coens felt like they were reaching some kind of major milestone or cycle in their career. Are they now to a place where they can look back to their origins and feel like they've generated a major oeuvre in the cinematic world?
Maybe, but I'm still just as excited for their future works. I might be even more excited for their upcoming Burn After Reading than I was for this film because it seems like it has all the ingredients for their next cult hit.
And because of this promo photo of John Malkovich in a bathroom swinging a hatchet at Richard Jenkins in a parking lot.
Rating: 10/10