Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin
Directed By: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Plot Summary: After finding over 2 million dollars, a man finds himself on the run from a merciless hitman determined to get the money back and enjoy killing his target. However, this hitman does not have a traditional code of ethics, as he carries a cattlegun, kills random people and leaves some of their deaths up to chance by flipping a coin. The town sheriff is also called to investigate the hitman's trail, but finds himself in over his head when this new evil makes his presence felt.
I remember seeing No Country For Old Men when it first came out. When I saw it, I was about 13 or 14. I wasn't able to understand the deep themes or even keep up with the dialogue, so I was left feeling very confused about what was actually going on in the film. After recently reading the book, I decided to check out the film for a second time. Once I understood what was going on, I was able to appreciate the film and understand why it won the Academy Award for Best Picture.
The film's most famous aspect is Javier Bardem's portrayal of Anton Chigurh. Despite his bowl haircut, Chigurh is actually a very intimidating antagonist. Chigurh's calm demeanor and unique accent genuinely made me feel uncomfortable during his scenes. His philosophies feel confusing, but to him, they make perfect sense, and that is what is the scariest part. You really can't figure out Chigurh's motives, or even his back story, resulting in a villain with an element of mystery. Bardem has the audience captivated, as well as disturbed by his career-defining portrayal of Chigurh, and was well deserving of winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.While Bardem is considered the most memorable part of the film, he is not the only great performance. Josh Brolin gives, in my opinion, a very underrated performance as Llewellyn Moss. Moss is more of an anti-hero than a main protagonist. The main point of view used in the movie is from Moss, as the audience spends a majority of film time with Moss as he is trying to outrun Chigurh. When we see what he sees, we can also see the wheels turn in his head to get himself out of a certain situation. While he is not the most likable of characters, there is something charismatic about his wit and his resourcefulness while running from Chigurh.
Tommy Lee Jones plays Sheriff Ed Tom Bell, an old-time sheriff called into action at the end of every scene involving Moss and Chigurh. Bell is at the end of his days being a Sheriff, and Chigurh's arrival is proof to Bell that he is not prepared for the new type of evil that is out there. Bell has a deep knowledge as a Sheriff upon his introduction, but it is when Chigurh is introduced that Bell actually starts to show signs of uncertainty for society as a whole.A lot of the scenes involving Bell is where I find most of the themes present for the film. Many would probably be surprised with how the film actually ends and think it's anti-climactic. I think it ends the way it should be, with how the events of the movie affect the main character, and that is Sheriff Bell.
Another important element is the film's pacing. I felt that for nearly two hours, the movie's dialogue and suspense helped move the film along at a natural pace. The dialogue, for the most part, is incorporated straight from the source material and it doesn't feel like lines written for a book or film, but instead feels like a natural flowing conversation people would have. The action scenes are full of suspense. One of the reasons they are suspenseful is that there is usually no background music to distract the audience's attention during the action scenes. The scenes are also gritty in their violence and feel very realistic and not overplayed for violence. The performances of the main actors really help accentuate these elements and turn a book I enjoyed reading, into a film I enjoyed watching.Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars.
No Country For Old Men is a film that made me pay attention. This is not a mindless action film, but rather a film full of great dialogue, suspense, and ideas to get the audience thinking. Highly recommend seeing the movie, and owning it in your movie collection.
Comment below to share your thoughts on the movie or to discuss a topic that I left out of my review
No Country For Old Men and movie images are copyrighted by Miramax Films and Paramount Vantage
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