Amazon.co.uk Review

The Coen brothers make their finest thriller since Fargo with a restrained adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's novel. Not that there aren't moments of intense violence, but No Country for Old Men is their quietest, most existential film yet. In this modern-day Western, Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) is a Vietnam veteran who needs a break. One morning while hunting antelope, he spies several trucks surrounded by dead bodies (both human and canine). In examining the site, he finds a case filled with $2 million. Moss takes it with him, tells his wife (Kelly Macdonald) he's going away for awhile, and hits the road until he can determine his next move. On the way from El Paso to Mexico, he discovers he's being followed by ex-special ops agent Chigurh (an eerily calm Javier Bardem). Chigurh's weapon of choice is a cattle gun, and he uses it on everyone who gets in his way--or loses a coin toss (as far as he's concerned, bad luck is grounds for death). Just as Sheriff Bell (Tommy Lee Jones), a World War II veteran, is on Moss's trail, Chigurh's former colleague, Wells (Woody Harrelson), is on his. For most of the movie, Moss remains one step ahead of his nemesis. Both men are clever and resourceful--except Moss has a conscious, Chigurh does not (he is, as McCarthy puts it, "a prophet of destruction"). At times, the film plays like an old horror movie, with Chigurh as its lumbering Frankenstein monster. Like the taciturn terminator, No Country for Old Men doesn't move quickly, but the tension never dissipates. This minimalist masterwork represents Joel and Ethan Coen and their entire cast, particularly Brolin and Jones, at the peak of their powers. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Amazon.co.uk

No Country for Old Men is Joel and Ethan Coen’s most gripping and accomplished film to date. DVD special features include a look at the Coen Brothers’ film-making process, showing how they assembled and shot one of the most compelling thrillers of the year, as well as shedding new light on the complex characters and celebrated creators of the film. Bonus features on this disc:

- The Making of No Country for Old Men

- Working with the Coens

- Diary of a Country Sheriff

Synopsis

With NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, the Coen Brothers have found a perfect match in Pulitzer Prize-winning author Cormac McCarthy. Their adaptation of McCarthy's praised novel is a staggering masterpiece. In this almost impossibly faithful adaptation, the film takes place in a small Texas border town in 1980. Sheriff Bell (a never-been-better Tommy Lee Jones) has ruled the land for years without the use of a gun, but a new brand of reckless lawlessness has taken over his town. Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) is an innocent Everyman with a devoted wife, Carla Jean (Kelly Macdonald), but when he stumbles across a drug deal gone deadly and finds two million dollars, he's determined to keep it for himself. There's only one problem. He's being pursued by one of the most amoral, evil psychopaths that the big screen has ever seen. Wearing an absurd haircut and brandishing a pressurized weapon that's used to murder cattle, Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) creeps forward on his mission to track Moss down and return the money to its rightful owners to save his own skin. As the tension mounts, the body count begins to rise, confirming Sheriff Bell's inability to battle this new wave of modern brutality.


The most striking thing about the Coen Brothers' thriller is their masterly use of silence to create an almost unbearable level of tension. Cinematographer Roger Deakins is once again at the top of his game, beautifully capturing this stark and lonely world. The well-rounded cast is clearly excited to be a part of such a stellar production--particularly Bardem, whose Chigurh is a freakishly mysterious monster, and is certain to haunt viewers long after the final credit has rolled. In a career filled with striking achievements, this might very well be the Coen Brothers' finest. It is filmmaking at its best.

Osar worthy (27. August 2008)

Every now and then, you watch a film, you dislike it but you respect it because you know that it's good. Which doesn't seem to make any sense at all, and it doesn't but that's the feeling I felt when I watched No country for old men. It's made by the Coen brothers, so quite obviously you know it's going to be well directed, and well written. As well as that, you know it includes Tommy Lee Jones so it's going to be well acted. But something I didn't expect when I watched this was that Javier Bardem was in fact the big star in this. He's haunting as a psychopathic killer who's after a LOT of money who a hunter has stumbled across in the middle of a desert. Unknown to this hunter, Javier Bardem's character has placed a tracking system on the money so it's basically a game of cat and mouse throughout the whole movie. Which is fine. But for some reason, despite all it's positives, this film never appealed to me when I watched it. Maybe it's the style of the film, the fact that it seems to be making too much effort to making critics like it rather than hooking the normal audience into it. Some people will feel bored while watching this, because in all respects it is very slow, which is meant to make the film seem more thrilling. And for some it might work, but for people who are used to films with guns blazing all over the place, this isn't really recommended. It deserves the oscars it's had, a lot of effort has been put into it, but the effort will only attract a certain audience. Not a film I personally liked then, but I respect it, and if you think your interested in watching a critically acclaimed modern western watch it, but if you think it won't appeal to you, it won't.

Another Coen Classic (25. August 2008)

I haven't read the book which this is based on. Other reviewers have indicated it is a masterpiece. If it is, then so is this brilliant film version. What the Coen brothers have done here is make a film that is completely different from mainstream Hollywood, and so far above the mainstream in terms of quality that it makes you wonder how Hollywood manages to survive with some of the rubbish it produces. There is no comparison you can make with mainstream Hollywood. Really you have to look to European cinema to find films made in the similar style.

It revolves around a drugs deal that goes wrong, and mainly follows two characters: Moss who finds the money associated with the deal and the other man wants it back. The second man is psychopathic killer called Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) who in his relentless pursuit kills anything and anyone who gets in his way. Sometimes this is just for fun and he tosses a coin to decide the victims fate. Another unusual aspect of this killer, is the main weapon he uses which is a cattle gun which is fired by compressed air. Not the most convenient of weapons but very effective. In pursuit of both men is Sheriff Bell, played by Tommy Lee Jones. He is really out of his depth. The title of the film is a direct reference to him as far as I can make out.

The Coen brothers film all this in their unique style, with their slightly odd take on the world. However unlike probably all their previous films, this one does not contain much, if any elements of black comedy. Another very unusual aspect to this film is the almost complete absence of a music soundtrack in the film. All the more surprising then when at one point in the film Moss wakes up to find a group of Mexican singers serenading him.

In terms of their previous films this is closest to Blood Simple, but its a much better film than their debut. In fact if I see a better film this year I'll be very surprised.

Fargo 2? (25. August 2008)

Any new release by the Coen brothers is an event and a film so highly praised by the critics got me salivating. But like Fargo before it, I really couldn't get on with this one. Sure it's atmospheric, well acted and beautifully shot but the story was all just a little hard to stomach. I just kept thinking to myself so how did they find him this time? If someone drives off into the middle of nowhere and stays at an obscure motel he ain't easy to find without some sort of lead. Plot holes of this nature weaken the story and destroy the immersion.

Next please.

no country for old mn (15. August 2008)

a great movie right up to the last 15 minutes, left me dissapointed and feeling cheated. heres a tip hollywood, every story should have an ending, it makes it so much more enjoyable for the viewer. you know the one whom the movie is made for.

Simply superb... (14. August 2008)

...but I'm sure it'll go over the heads of many. How anyone could give this 1 star is astonishing!