No Country for Old Men

I'm a HUGE fan of the Coen Brothers. Even some of their less successful movies always leave me delighted because they dare play around with tone and audience expectations. Who but this brotherly team would attempt a movie like THE LADYKILLERS or MAN WHO WASN'T THERE? But in NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, they return to their true forte...the crime thriller. Although my personal favorite is RAISING ARIZONA...it is probably true that in decades from now the Coens will be best remembered and admired for BLOOD SIMPLE, FARGO, MILLER'S CROSSING and now their adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's bleak Southwest thriller. NO COUNTRY...tells the story of how one simple man (Josh Brolin), out on a hunting trip somewhere in the vast emptiness of west Texas, stumbles across the scene of a drug deal gone bad. Empty pickup trucks, dead men everywhere, and one lone survivor. This dying man asks for water (which Brolin doesn't have) and then Brolin finds a big bag full of about $2 million. He takes the money, not really thinking about the consequences. We find that he lives in a single wide mobile home with his attractive but too compliant wife. We think Brolin is a simple and probably heartless man...but when he decides he needs to go back and give that dying man some water...his moment of kindness is his undoing. He is discovered and soon his is identified. Now he's being hunted by the authorities, the drug dealers and most awfully, he's being chased by Anton Chugurh (Javier Bardem), who could be one of the most malevolent serial killers / hitmen in movie history. Brolin sends his family into hiding and goes on the run himself. He hops from one rundown hotel room to another, leaving a trail of death and violence following him. And drawing ever closer is Bardem...calm, steady and absolutely convinced that he will recover the money and kill the man who took it. Trying to sort everything out is Tommy Lee Jones as the local sheriff, who feels that not only is he in over his head (although we see very early on that he has a native instinct and craftiness for his work that actually make s him a pretty brilliant investigator)...but he feels that society itself has moved on without him. The scenes of violence he encounters are beyond anything he's experienced. He is afraid, but worse than that, he is spiritually shaken. These three men, and a host of supporting characters (including a well-cast Woody Harrelson) chase each other around...and just the chase itself would make an entertaining film. But what we have here is a film that makes us smell the desperation, feel the emptiness and loneliness of the landscape AND the people who live there. This is a brutal and non-compromising film. It's so great because it is splendidly entertaining...and yet it fills you with a tension that goes beyond the simple plot developments. In a way, we begin to feel about the events much the same way that Tommy Lee Jones feels. We are invited into his inner turmoil...and we feel it. And as always, the Coens are utter masters of tone. They know exactly how funny they want humorous scenes to be and exactly how to turn tension up and down. Then just up and up and up. It is a VERY well acted film. Bardem will almost certainly be nominated for an Oscar...and he deserves it. What a role! He's a complete success at conveying emptiness. He kills with no pleasure...but he has also made killing his first line of action in almost any situation. I guess he's just learned that this is the best way to solve problems and get people out of the way. Bardem is riveting. It's a complete cliché to say "you can't keep your eyes off him," but I'm comfortable reporting that for me, I couldn't keep my eyes off him. It's a brilliant creation of McCarthy's...interpreted by the Coen Brothers and then brought to amazing life by Bardem. Brolin gives by far his finest performance. With this performance and his role in AMERICAN GANGSTER, he must now be taken seriously as an actor. Jones is the ONLY actor who could have played his part...he's that good and that iconic. What other actor do we know who should be playing a grizzled Texas lawman in the modern age? Robert Duvall perhaps? Other than that, the list only includes Jones. I must warn you...you almost certainly will not like the ending. McCarthy has never felt the need to wrap up his stories in a tidy package (doing so would in fact undo much of what he's trying to say about life) and the Coens have not shied away from his vision. I found the ending a little jolting myself...until I took the time to reflect on what it meant and how it made me feel. Then I understood a little better how brilliant it was. This is easily one of the most satisfying, most artistically mature and most viscerally entertaining movies of the year! A triumph for the Coen Brothers!

The powerful novels of Cormac McCarthy may lend themselves to interpretation on film and No Country for Old Men has been successfully translated by the Coen brothers and is a superb work of art in its own right. In an interview in a recent magazine, McCarthy indicated he was pleased with the translation of his novel into a film, saying that the film captured the novel. The direct, bleak, no frills dialogue that is a characteristic of McCarthy's novels is captured in the dialogue in the film. Both the novel and the film are disturbing, not only for violent content but also for the philosophical underpinning of the novel and film. As the literary critic Harold Bloom notes, the violence in McCarthy's work is not gratuitous, but plays and essential role in the underlying message and theme of the work. I hope to focus on this underlying philosophy in this review. The story is that of an everyman, a self contained competent American male against forces that are overpowering even for his rugged native ingenuity. Llewelyn Moss, played superbly by Josh Brolin, discovers where a drug deal gone bad has left all parties (both men an dogs) dead on the field, with neither the money or the drugs taken away. He finds 2 million dollars in payoff money and takes it. However, he violates a basic premise, often explored in the novels of John Bowles, that he should follow his instincts and never second guess himself in such a risky situation. Llewelyn is troubled by the cry of a dying Mexican drug dealer for water and so he fills up an empty milk jug and goes back to the scene of the crimes to give he man water. What a mistake this is and what a price he pays. He is soon pursued by a paid killer, Chigurh, played perfectly by Javier Bardem. He sends his wife to his mother-in-law's home and tries to escape the, and embarks on an escape, leaving his wife Carla (Kelly Macdonald) to escape the pursuit of Chigurh. Because of the string of killings, Chigurh is being tracked by the local sheriff, played by Tommy Lee Jones. The sheriff becomes somewhat of a narrator and commentator upon the events as they unfold. Chigurh is also followed by a hitman, played by Woody Harrelson, who works for one of the criminal parties left empty handed after the desert shoot out. Much terror follows, making for an intense and suspenseful film that will keep viewers on the edge of their seats. But who and what is Chigurh? Many, in fact the majority, of reviewers see him as a homicidal maniac, as insane, a psychopathic murderer. But he is more than that. He appears in other McCarthy novels as other similar characters. The most obvious is Judge Holden in the frightening novel Blood Meridian. As Harold Bloom points out, this character is also that of Achilles in The Iliad by Homer. He is the embodiment of the dark animalistic homicidal nature of mankind which like tornadoes and earthquakes and hurricanes, is part of nature, is a force of nature, is often unavoidable, and which follows the rules of natural forces and not the rules of man. He also follows the rules of chance rather than the rules of man, as evidenced by his use of a flip of a coin to determine who may live or die. It is the worn-out and wise Sherriff that senses this in his pursuit of the killer Chigurh and his gathering of the endless clues that point to both the brutality and cruelty of Chigurh. The Sherriff has a dialogue with an estranged relative about the death of one of their ancestors, a lawman, who is killed in the line of duty. The comments of the Sherriff and his dialogue with family members and colleagues, reveals his philosophy that this evil force will burn itself out, reach some point of conclusion, and will move away. This is a very different view of how evil should be dealt with in Western, and specifically American culture, where we must fight evil until the bitter end rather than seeing evil as a storm that will one day move on. The strength of the film is absolute fidelity to this philosophy on the nature of evil. With a compelling story, superb acting, penetrating dialogue, and the ability to challenge thoughtful viewer's preconceived notions, this film is excellent.

Why like Cormac McCarthy books. I like some of the ones that have been turned into movies. Is a great book and movie. The movie is outstanding. I'd recommend it.

Disk was fully functional and this is a very good movie. Would recommend

Good.

100 % OK Goede verzending van besteld item beantwoorde volledig aan de beschrijving van de verkoper ( uiterst tevreden ) :-):-):-)

Ich kann es eigentlich garnicht in Worte fassen, wie grandios dieser Film ist. Wenn es um die Wahl meiner absoluten Lieblingsfilme gehen würde, wäre dieses Kunstwerk mit Sicherheit auch dabei. Diesen Streifen kann man immer zu jeder Zeit kucken und er wird nie langweilig. Das erste mal bin ich damals auf diesen Film gestoßen, als er vor einigen Jahren im TV lief. Es ist einer von wenigen Filmen bei dem ich während des durchzappen im Programm hängen geblieben bin. Es ist einfach unglaublich wie es dieser Film schafft, vor lauter Spannung den Zuschauer am Bildschirm zu halten. Es konnte natürlich auch nicht lange dauern, bis ich mir diesen Film dann fürs Heimkino zugelegt habe. Erst auf DVD und mitterweile auch auf Blu-Ray. Und ich habe diese Käufe bis heute nicht bereut. ZUR STORY: Auf der Jagd von Böcken stößt Llewelyn Moss nur eher zufällig auf den verlassenen Tatort eines Massenmordes, mitten in der Wüste von Texas. Mehrere Leichen am Boden, einen mexikanischen Truck voller Drogen und einen liegen gebliebenen Koffer voller Geld, lassen drauf deuten, dass hier wohl ein Drogendeal geplatzt ist und sich die Gangster gegenseitig erschossen haben. Nur ein schwer Verletzter Typ der zu verdursten droht, scheint wohl der einzigste überlebende Zeuge des Vorfalles zu sein. Moss überlegt nicht lange, nimmt den Geldkoffer an sich und verschwindet damit. Als es dunkel wird, traut er sich aber wieder an den Tatort zurück, um dem Schwerverletzen einen Kanister Wasser zu bringen. Er ahnt allerdings nicht, das mitterweile auch das mexikanische Drigenkartell am Ort des Geschehens angekommen ist, um das Geld und die Drogen sicher zu stellen. Als sie Llewelyn Moss dort entdecken, beginnen sie eine Jagd auf ihn. Zwar kann er zunächst einmal noch entkommen, sicher ist er aber noch lange nicht. Die Mexikaner beauftragen kurz drauf den skrupellosen Auftragsmörder Anton Chigurh damit, den Koffer zu finden und Llewelyn Moss zu töten. Es beginnt eine Jagd auf Leben und Tot. Es dauert nicht lange und auch der Sheriff Ed Tom Bell wird zu diesem Tatort gerufen. Er findet schnell heraus was hier passiert ist und macht nun auch Jagd auf den Killer um ihn zu stoppen, und natürlich auch Jagd auf Moss um ihn zu beschützen. ZUR BEWERTUNG: Dieser Film ist ein Meisterwerk und wurde nicht umsonst mit 4 Oscars ausgezeichnet. Die Meisterregiseure und Drehbuchauthoren Ethan und Joel Coen haben hier wiedereinmal bewiesen, welche Genies sie doch sind. Ich glaube „No Country for old man“ war auch der entscheidende Grund, warum ich entgültig Fan der Coen Brothers geworden bin. Zuvor kannte ich zar schon „Fargo“ und „Millers Crossing“ die ja auch schon extrem gut sind, aber „No Country for old man“ ist glaube ich nochmal das i-Tüpfelschen ihrer Filme. Einzigartiges Drehbuch, gute Handlung, wunderbare Landschaften und extrem viel Spannung, machen diesen Film wirklich zu einem Meisterwerk. Daher liebe ich amerikanisches Kino einfach über alles. Auch die schauspielerische Leistung der Darsteller ist echt unglaublich gut. Josh Brolin, der den Llewelyn Moss verkörpert spielt seine Rolle einfach so gut, dass man teilweise sogar mitfiebert sobald er irgendwo in Gefahr steckt. Auch Javier Bardem, der den skrupellosen Killer Anton Chigurh spielt, kommt einem teilweise so furchteinflößend rüber, dass man denkt dieser Typ ist auch im echten Leben so krass. Zu guter letzt darf natürlich auch nicht der gute alte Tommy Lee Jones fehlen, der hier die Rolle des Sheriffs Ed Tom Bell übernimmt und jagd auf den Killer sowohl auch auf Llewelyn Moss macht. Diese Rolle passt wiedereinmal wie die Faust auf Auge. Denn Tommy Lee Jones in der gewohten Rolle eines Polizisten zu sehen, erinnert mich sofort an andere Filme wie z.B. Auf der Jagd, Auf der Flucht, Doppelmord oder auch Man in Black. Ich glaube niemand anderes hätte besser in die Position des Gesetzeshüters gepasst wie Tommy. Obwohl dieser Film mit seiner Laufzeit von 122 Minuten schon sehr lange ist, kommt es einem trotzdem vor als sei nach 70 Minuten schon Schluss. Der Film ist eben zu keiner Sekunde langweilig. MEIN FAZIT: Ich bewerte hier alleine den Film. Auf Qualität möchte ich eigentlich nicht großartig eingehen. Aber ich empfinde die Blu-Ray Qualität eigentlich sehr angenehm. Den Vergleich zur DVD kann ich jetz nicht ziehen, da ich die Unterschiede jetzt nicht mehr so in Erinnerung habe. Aber besser als die DVD scheint die Bildqualität auf Blu-Ray schon zu sein. Bei den Tonformaten stehen außer deutsch, französich, italienisch und spanisch natürlich auch der Originalton englisch zur Verfügung. Alle natürlich auch in Dolby Digital 5.1 Sound. Es kleines Manko gibt es in diesem Film allerdings schon, denn gegen Ende passiert etwas sehr unerwartetes. Es kommt zu einer Wende, in der plötzlich und ohne Vorwarnung etwas drastisches passiert womit man eigentlich garnicht rechnet. Meiner Meinung nach geht das alles auf einmal viel zu schnell, sodass man erst garnicht richtig realisieren kann, was ganau da jetz eigentlich passiert ist. Während man die ganze Story fast einundhalb Stunden lang spannend und langsam durcherzählt, versucht man hier am Ende alles ganz schnell zum Finale zu bringen, weil der Film sonst wahrscheinlich zu lange geworden wäre. Zumindest ich habe die Befürchtung das dies der Grund gewesen sein könnte. Aber auch in anderen Rezesionen wird sich über das plötzliche und viel zu schnelle Ende beschwert, da bin ich ja nicht der einzige. Dennoch verliert dieser Film daduch nicht an Qualität und hat seine 5 Sterne auf jeden Fall verdient. ich spreche hier eine klare Kaufempfehlung aus.

Come sempre con i Coen ci si trova di fronte a grande cinema, in questo caso un capolavoro, da mettere vicino a L' Uomo che non c'era, Fargo, Il Grande Lebowski per me. Film NON consigliato, semplicemente IMPERDIBILE.

Brand new in clear wrapper as advertised. The shipping was fast and movie was a great price. As for the movie itself, its a good movie, slower then a normal action movie, but the story is great, acting is great. Watch it if you haven't

Excellent film et si vous ne l'avez pas encore vu, préparez-vous à vivre une expérience cinématographique digne de ce nom. Un thriller implacable avec une interprétation de grande qualité et un suspense à couper le souffle. Il est normal que ce film obtienne 4 oscars en 2007 dont celui du meilleur film. Image HD et son en 5.1 Dolby Digital.