No Country for Old Men
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
By Judd Grossman
‘No Country For Old Men’
Directed by Ethan Coen and Joel Coen
Featuring Tommy Lee Jones, Javeir Bardem, Josh Brolin, Woody Harrelson, and Kelly Macdonald
F-you, Coen brothers.
You thrilled me with the quirky “Raising Arizona” and the hilarious “Fargo,” with it’s over-the-top portrayal of Minnesota culture, but you really let me down with “No Country For Old Men.”
Set in 1980 in the deserts and small towns of west Texas, “No Country For Old Men” is propelled by a bad drug deal that entangles a Vietnam vet, a county sheriff and a psychopathic killer. Riveting performances from Tommy Lee Jones, Javeir Bardem, Josh Brolin, Woody Harrelson, and Kelly Macdonald, and a heart-thumping suspenseful screenplay couldn’t save this film from it’s fatal flaw: The story sucks the life out of you.
Every film enters into a bargain with the viewer: “Shell out some bucks, sit in a dark room with sticky floors, pay too much for some munchies and come along for a ride. You might not like the journey and where you end up, but I’m going to give you something you need.”
This film asks the viewer to be patient while it slams you with gratuitous violence and sinister brutality. There had to be some satisfying twist or a brilliant insight at the end. Art would reveal truth: The world is brutal and unfair, but ... .
Unfortunately, there was no “but.” I admired the movie only for it’s unflinching commitment to bleak despair. But if a movie is going to jar me with larger-than-life brutality, it needs to leave me with some kind of message that will transcend that brutality or risk my wrath.
Maybe I’m mad because this movie completely contradicts my worldview. I can accept the random brutality of existence, but my gut tells me that there is beauty and goodness that transcends evil. The meticulously constructed reality of this fim is that the world is a meat grinder where everyone gets their turn either at the crank or in the grinder.
Rate this movie “N” for nihilistic, and let the buyer beware. F-you Coens.
PERMALINK:
No Country for Old Men | Planet JH News Article: Movie Reviews
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