No Country For Old Men, movie.
A difficult movie to review. Through 80-90 percent of it I thought it was one of the most powerful and moving films I'd seen. Also had a lot of subtle humor. Beautiful acting and cinematography, and never clichéd.
But then it ended in not one of the many possible endings you could have imagined for the story, and it felt very unsatisfactory. To me at least. Pissed me off. I thought that was unnecessary, I don't know what the point was. It was like somebody putting out a delicious desert after an excellent meal, and then taking the desert away after you'd had one bite.
It does have this going for it: it has one of the most fresh and scary villains we've seen since, fuck, I don't know, a long time. He's cold as dry ice.
I try to see Coen Bros movies. This one just keeps getting pre-empted on the to watch list. Can you hint which of their movies this is most like. For example, if it's a Raising Arizona, then eventually I'll get there. If it's a Blood Simple, or Burn After Reading, I'll watch it tonight.
ReplyDeleteCheers
Definitely more Blood Simple than Raising Arizona.
ReplyDeleteWell, the fucking book was depressing as hell......Haysoos Chreestoos.rel
ReplyDeleteI remember feeling like the ending was perfect, and it was one of the best movies that I've seen. I should probably rewatch, though.
ReplyDeleteWow. OK.
ReplyDeleteI have seen hints that reviews are very mixed on the movie, I'm sure it must be mainly the ending which divides.
Interesting, I see similar dichotomies with every Coen effort. They are all over the map in style and pace. All with great execution, but covering such diverse tastes that they will, at some point, appeal to everyone with their collective works, but no one of their films seems to have mass appeal.
ReplyDeleteBut then it ended in not one of the many possible endings you could have imagined for the story, and it felt very unsatisfactory.
ReplyDeleteI loved the ending because it didn't end the way so many Hollywood movies do. (That is, there wasn't a happy ending. Or, the other stock alternative, it didn't end in some big gun battle with the bad guy getting gunned down Dillinger style.) You and others have complained about this before on this blog but when one throws you a twist, you complain that it wasn't one of the predictable endings you imagined.
I don't know what the point was.
Tommy Lee Jones' character told the audience the point several times. I'd also guess that it was the old "sometimes the bad guys win" or "in real life, the bad guys usually or often win."
It was like somebody putting out a delicious desert after an excellent meal,
I saw it as the cherry on top of that delicious desert.
It does have this going for it: it has one of the most fresh and scary villains we've seen since, fuck, I don't know, a long time. He's cold as dry ice.
A friend of mine suggested that it was the hairdo that did it. There's something to that. Almost anyone would be scary in that hair. That hair should have got an Oscar.
Yes. I thought it too. A 1980 hairdo.
ReplyDeleteI did not wish for a cokie-cutter ending, au contraire.
SPOILERS
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But for Pete's sake, none of the main characters ever even met! And after a rather tight plot, all the events of the last ten minutes seemed random and meaningless.
This was the worst movie I ever saw.
ReplyDeleteThis was the worst movie I ever saw.
ReplyDeleteYou have seen very few movies then. The worst I've ever seen is Highlander 2, a movie Roger Ebert described as "almost awesome in its badness." It's bad enough for people who haven't seen the first one, but if you have you're (if anything) even more confused and pissed off - and that's just two minutes past the opening credits.
"The Quickening"? Yes, that was wonderfully bad.
ReplyDeleteThey have a forcefield around the Earth held by satelites. And they get above the forcefield... by climbing a mountain!
I thought I'd seen all three Highlander movies. I guess I was sleeping through them.
ReplyDeleteI remember a friend saw one of them in Germany, then again in Britain. He said the film was cut very differently, and the one he saw in the UK made no sense.
The first one was novel and interesting, though it had annoying accents at times. Still 90 minutes of sword fights and Queen, quite suited us at my high school.
For Lambert (and Adjani) I preferred Subway. Wonderful film.
ReplyDeleteThe first one was novel and interesting, though it had annoying accents at times. Still 90 minutes of sword fights and Queen, quite suited us at my high school.
ReplyDeleteI did like the first one although I didn't care for the music not being a Queen fan. They never really did explain why an immortal would look as old as Connery, though (I guess he was only in his 50s or something then). They should have stopped there though. I wonder if when they were making the second one if they thought it was good. I kind of wonder about that with bad movies. Did they think Showgirls was good when it was made? What did Halle Berry think while she making Catwoman? There are tons of really bad movies and I've seen a few of them but none to my mind compares to Highlander 2. I was disappointed in Plan 9 From Outer Space because it was nowhere near as bad as I had been led to believe.
Is "Plan 9" bad? I agree, I was always told it was "The worst movie", but is that for real, or just the opinion of the Medved bros?
ReplyDeleteFrom Wikipedia "He [Micheal] also collaborated with his brother, Harry Medved, on four satirical books about movies: The Fifty Worst Films of All Time (1979), The Golden Turkey Awards (1980), The Hollywood Hall of Shame (1984) and "Son of Golden Turkey Awards" (1986)."
I remember seeing the Golden Turkey awards on TV, and C4 screen the top 10 in the list.
I'd say that Ed Wood is an honest, enthusiastic film maker. Sure he was forgiving in quality, but...
Thanks for the review. I've added it to my list of movies to rent after the summer.
ReplyDeleteI like the Coen Bros. movies precisely because I never know what's going to happen next.
ReplyDeleteI hesitate to watch a Coen Bros. movie I haven't already seen precisely because I never know what's going to happen next, and those guys play rough sometimes.
I try not to let a recently-viewed Coen Bros. movie influence my vocabulary, because I'm nice.
I try not to let a recently-viewed Coen Bros. movie influence my vocabulary, because I'm nice.
ReplyDeleteOne of those, huh? I hate people like you.