Just a week after I wrote about probably the Coen brothers film with the most mystery and depth in A Serious Man, I watched the extremely straightforward Coen brothers version of True Grit. Despite their deviation from their usual eccentricity, I loved the film. The Coen brothers like Tarantino have a knack for propelling a film with a screenplay’s dialogue, rather than the film’s action. The humorous and compelling discussion makes this film. With fantastic performances from the main three actors, I was completely swept up in the journey. This short, straightforward film seems to have found a wide appeal, and the huge box office revenue is the evidence. By the way… was anyone else disappointed that ‘LaBoeuf’ was not spelled ‘LaBeef?’ Just me?
True Grit and the Coen Brothers
Still Playing – True Grit
Not to age my dad or anything, but westerns are a very generational thing. Heck, the last time I really watched a western by choice was when I became obsessed with one scene in McLintock! after accidentally opening the gifted VHS copy meant for my dad on Christmas as a child. And in all honesty, if it wasn’t for last year’s ridiculously addictive video game Red Dead Redemption, the trailer for True Grit probably wouldn’t have peaked my interest as it did. Well, it may not have all the violence, horse racing and addictive Oregon Trail hunting, but True Grit still manages to reach a larger audience than just those who were alive for the John Wayne original.
The looser laws of the Wild West create the perfect setting for a classic story of good old revenge, which is exactly what we have here. The difference is this story’s point of view doesn’t come from a hardened, stiff-jawed gunslinger. As a 14-year-old Mattie Ross may not be able to stay standing after firing a pistol, but she is just as strong willed as the men she comes across, with the determination necessary to hunt down the man who guiltlessly gunned down her father. [Read more...]
Review: True Grit
The latest from the Coen Bros., True Grit, is their least odd and most straightforward film to date but there is still plenty of weirdness, laughs, and amazing performances that we expect from these guys in this great film.
The film is not a remake of the 1969 John Wayne film of the same name but is instead a re-adaptation of the Charles Portis source novel from 1968. The Coen’s wanted to do this to put the point of view back through Mattie’s eyes and re-instill some of the humor in the novel. The result is fantastic as the film is surprisingly (though not really, it is a Coen Bros. movie after all) hilarious; especially considering the tone of the TV spots I have seen. The film also delivers on the tone it is selling though and features heart pumping moments and plenty of drama.
The story follows the fore mentioned Mattie as she recruits a local U.S. Marshal, Rooster Cogburn, to hunt down and capture the man who killed her father in cold blood. [Read more...]
Suggestion Box (Sept. 27 – Oct. 3)
This week’s Suggestion Box has the trailer for Heartless, True Grit, Wild Target, and a second trailer for Paranormal Activity 2 and for Skyline. Also, we’ve got a trailer for the upcoming DLC for Read Dead Redemption (Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare). Clearly we are getting closer to Halloween with this selection.
Movies:
Heartless Trailer - Well this is pretty far from singing Beatles songs… Jim Sturgess makes a deal with the devil, or someone else with equally ominous deals to be made for a “better” life, in this film about the underworld creeping into ours. Nothing necessarily new, but I do love Sturgess as an actor and am intrigued to see how he does in this one.
