The Coen brothers (The Big Lebowski, True Grit, Fargo) love to leave the audience with a lot of afterthoughts about their films. No Country for Old Men is no exception to this method. I often struggle to enjoy Coen brother films because of the way they leave the audience in the dark. However, like the taste of coffee their films grown on you as you mature. Their films are deep and thought-provoking, but also use surface-level messages to keep you wondering what is really going on behind the storyline. In a sense, the storyline is not always important, which is hard for audiences to comprehend. Finally with No Country for Old Men, I can start to truly appreciate the high-level artform that the Coen brothers are thriving off of.
One key factor that helps the viewers enjoy No Country for Old Men are the top-notch performances constructed by the main actors. Josh Brolin (The Goonies) plays Llewelyn Moss, a hunter who encounters more than he can handle when he is out hunting. Moss is a superb character with internal ideologies that lead him down a path that is bigger than he originally imagines. On the other hand, Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones's [Men in Black] character) struggles with the path that he has followed his whole life. The one prolonged case that Bell ends up with is enough to make him question his whole life's work. Bell delivers the message to the audience that there is a possibility that nothing on the screen really even matters. Here's the weird part about the film: The Coen brothers write a whole script, then throw it at the audience, and then basically claim that it doesn't really matter. What other filmmaker works this hard to complete a pointless project? I think that's the point though.
The real elephant in the room for this film though is Javier Bardem (Skyfall). This accomplished actor creates a villain that can be held on a pedestal at the same level as The Joker in The Dark Knight. We cannot understand his methods and he constantly shocks us. Bardem is the perfect fit for the role of Anton Chigurh, a cold-blooded killer. Every second that Bardem is on the screen, goosebumps crawl all over me as I wonder if he will spare the victim or not. Furthermore, he is given signature weapons to emphasize his role as an experienced killer. This role has surely helped him gain more notoriety as one of the greatest actors alive today. Ever since this role, Bardem has continued to bring amazing villains to the big screen including Silva in Skyfall.
The Bottom Line: If you do not like conceptual films that make you question life itself, then don't watch this one. But if you never watch this film, you will have missed one of the greatest films of your lifetime!
Score: 9.8/10
Image credit: By MIRAMAX - onlyhdwallpapers.com, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22849805
One key factor that helps the viewers enjoy No Country for Old Men are the top-notch performances constructed by the main actors. Josh Brolin (The Goonies) plays Llewelyn Moss, a hunter who encounters more than he can handle when he is out hunting. Moss is a superb character with internal ideologies that lead him down a path that is bigger than he originally imagines. On the other hand, Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones's [Men in Black] character) struggles with the path that he has followed his whole life. The one prolonged case that Bell ends up with is enough to make him question his whole life's work. Bell delivers the message to the audience that there is a possibility that nothing on the screen really even matters. Here's the weird part about the film: The Coen brothers write a whole script, then throw it at the audience, and then basically claim that it doesn't really matter. What other filmmaker works this hard to complete a pointless project? I think that's the point though.
The real elephant in the room for this film though is Javier Bardem (Skyfall). This accomplished actor creates a villain that can be held on a pedestal at the same level as The Joker in The Dark Knight. We cannot understand his methods and he constantly shocks us. Bardem is the perfect fit for the role of Anton Chigurh, a cold-blooded killer. Every second that Bardem is on the screen, goosebumps crawl all over me as I wonder if he will spare the victim or not. Furthermore, he is given signature weapons to emphasize his role as an experienced killer. This role has surely helped him gain more notoriety as one of the greatest actors alive today. Ever since this role, Bardem has continued to bring amazing villains to the big screen including Silva in Skyfall.
The Bottom Line: If you do not like conceptual films that make you question life itself, then don't watch this one. But if you never watch this film, you will have missed one of the greatest films of your lifetime!
Score: 9.8/10
Image credit: By MIRAMAX - onlyhdwallpapers.com, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22849805
