No Country For Old Men: A Film I Just Done Seen

The Cohen brothers have a reputation for effortlessly portraying both violence and whimsy, often on the same reel. However, their latest project, No Country For Old Men, takes any flicker of whimsy and administers a savage beating before calling it a pussy and telling it to run along. It’s a balls-out-manly-action-thriller, but with an intelligent and subtle edge.

And yes, it is a magnificent piece of cinema, although truth be told, I never expected anything less from Ethan and Joel Cohen, especially so given the 4 academy awards plastered across the DVD case.

Without giving too much away, a down-and-out (Josh Brolin) stumbles upon the aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong, and a whole lot of money. So, doing as any man with an under-active common sense gland would, he takes it. Understandably, this makes certain people somewhat upset, and an assassin (Javier Bardem) is hired to take care of the situation. Predictably, the best laid plans go awry, and a chase across southwest Texas is initiated. So far, so meh.

However, from the simplistic set-up emerges a film wrought with complexity and narrative intrigue. Every twist and turn in the winding plot is detailed from three perspectives - the hunter, the hunted, and the sheriff, although these roles are by no means set in stone (wink wink, nudge nudge). So drawn was I, that when the ending eventually came, it took every ounce of reserve in me to stifle a scream.

The already superb plot is enhanced and refined with some masterful acting on the part of Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin and Javier Bardem, who rightfully scooped the academy award for best supporting actor at the 2007 oscars. And this formulates perhaps the only identifiable problem with the film; Bardem’s performance overshadows his two veteren co-stars, who, put in any other film, would win critical acclaim, but in this context have had the wind taken out of their sails by the Spanish giant. But really, is this even worth mentioning? Well yes. Fool.

Tying this all together is the bright orange and khaki colour pallet, and some wonderful shots of the sweeping Texas countryside that makes up the backdrop. Although the camerawork is standard fare, a sound technique first debuted in Alien lowers the volume of any conversation, forcing you to ‘crane your ears’ (I totally just made that up, but y’know what I mean) to catch what’s going on, and increasing the impact of shocks and ‘plosions.

Ultimately, No Country For Old Men is another highly polished, and extremely successful piece of cinema from the dynamic duo <– (I promise I’ll never write that again). Although I may be somewhat biased (I’m a massive Cohen brothers fanboy), it certainly does seem hard to fault. Well worth a rental, if not a purchase - you really will want to watch it over and over. And, although I may seem hasty to declare it so - my film of 2007.

Since watching this film, I've been engineering scenarios in which to say 'call it, friendo'. 'Cos I'm cool.