"No Country For Old Men" Review and Trailer

Easily my favorite film of the year thus far.

2007 has been a predominantly weak year for movies. Sure there was "3:10 to Yuma," "The Bourne Ultimatum," "Eastern Promises," "Into the Wild," and "Ratatouille." And then there was the commercially unsuccessful but critically acclaimed thriller "The Lookout." And least, but certainly not least was the largely disliked and discarded "Zodiac," one of my favorite films from 2007. Besides the comedies, "Knocked Up" and "Superbad" I cannot recall seeing a serious film that I knew instantly I could watch over and over. In '06 there was "Children of Men," "Perfume," "Little Children," and "Pan's Labyrinth," all films I that I immediately bought on DVD because of their repeatability factors. Each film has a high repeatability factor, which means I can easily sustain multiple viewings of these films and therefore I can justify the purchasing as opposed to the renting of these DVDs. This year, there hasn't yet been such a film, besides Wes Anderson's "The Darjeeling Limited," though almost unanimously panned by critics, I enjoyed thoroughly! But back in June, I saw the preview for "No Country For Old Men" on MovieBox.net, I cannot remember ever being so monumentally excited for a movie. This was a Coen Brothers film. This was not "Intolerable Cruelty" or "The Ladykillers" those were complete flukes and I don't even consider them Coen pictures. Those are the only Coen Brothers movies I don't own on DVD, all their other films from "Blood Simple" to "The Man Who Wasn't There" I own on DVD. And I hold each film in particularly high esteem. So you can imagine how excited I was when I saw this trailer, which is absolutely amazing, I cannot even articulate the feelings this trailer evoked after the first time I saw it. I was just so incredibly excited!

So the summer passed and I anxiously awaited the release of "No Country For Old Men." I was tempted all too often to purchase the novel because of my affinity for Cormac McCarthy's work, but because I am an odd creature I wanted to see the movie before reading the book. Because I am one of those rare breeds that appreciates cinema slightly more than literature I tend to watch the movie before reading the book. Anyways, I was terribly excited for this picture. Every week I went online and scanned the internet for information regarding early screenings in the Los Angeles area. I could not wait until the official release date November 9th, I had to get to a screening as soon as possible! So perhaps you can imagine how ecstatic I was when I discovered that LACMA would be screening the film about a week prior to its official release! I bought tickets immediately and marked it on my calendar, and I don't mark anything on my calendar, ever!

Saturday arrived and I could barely contain my excitement. The film was at the forefront of my mind throughout the day. Finally I arrived at the theater with my friends whose enthusiasm I must say failed to match mine, but that's not important. As I settled in my side I scanned the theater hoping maybe Joel and Ethan Coen would arrive for a surprise visit and maybe introduce the movie or conduct a Q & A, but they were nowhere to be found. My disappointment was eclipsed by the dimming of the lights as I anxiously awaited the start of the movie.

"No Country For Old Men" is based on the novel by the renowned author Cormac McCarthy. A hunter, Llewellyn Moss (Josh Brolin), stumbles upon the scene of a mass murder and a truckload of heroin and a satchel filled with $250 million. The sadistic Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) is hired to recover the money without any regard for anything else, especially human life. And Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) is the fatigued sheriff investigating the series of murders that ensue. It is an extraordinarily violent tale about the nature of evil and the inevitable corruption of the soul brought on by greed.

The film was beautifully shot. Roger Deakins (who has been the Director of Photography for every Coen Brothers film since "Barton Fink" was produced in 1991) reminds us why he is one of the most revered cinematographers working in the business today. Rarely is such beauty captured on film, and rarely is such beauty contrasted with such horrific violence and blatant malevolence. Deakins' carefully constructed cinematography creates an atmosphere consistent with the film's tone and representative of the characters and their feelings. As violent as this film is, the cinematography is so tastefully done that you cannot turn away during the most disturbing of sequences because Deakins frames each shot with such precision that the word "fascinating" does not even begin to describe how incredibly engrossing each particular shot is.

The film is a technical masterpiece. The Coens craft an incredibly high tension experience. They leave almost no breathing room for the audience because each scene conveys such frightening uncertainty and suspense. It must be noted that this is in no way a horror film, or even a scary film. But the magnetic performances and the technically flawless production make this film shockingly realistic. The Coens know how to create a mood better than anyone else in Hollywood. They know exactly what they want their audience to feel and they ensure that those feelings come through on screen.

Lastly, the performances must be addressed. Josh Brolin's understated performance was magnificent. There was nothing contrived or forced about his performance. His acting was so utterly simple that it perfectly reflected the man, Llewellyn Moss, himself. Tommy Lee Jones delivered an incredibly accurate portrayal of a "world-weary" Sheriff struggling with the demons of his past and the inconveniences of old age. No other actor embraces his age like Tommy Lee Jones. The wrinkles, weariness, and ruggedness that accompany old age are unabashedly displayed in every one of his scenes, illustrating not only Jones' maturity and prudence, but also the maturity of his character. But the actor who dominated the screen was Javier Bardem. His character is easily among the most menacing of villains in 21st century cinema. No one else can incite terror like Anton Chigurh. Javier Bardem is an acting virtuoso, he consistently exhibits profound versatility as evidenced by the various roles he plays. Anton is far and away Bardem's greatest cinematic achievement. It is a tour de force performance. Bardem completely embodied Chigurh . Rarely can an actor breath such life into a character.

"No Country For Old Men" is easily the most riveting and thought-provoking film of the year. There is some dark humor, but nowhere near the amount of dark humor the Coens are accustomed to injecting into their pictures. This film will arouse controversy and discussion if interpreted correctly, as an allegorical tale of good and evil. And if the film's themes go over your head, there is still no refuting the fact that it is supremely entertaining, and so far the best movie of the year.

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