Could the intern be right? No…
When No Country for Old Men debuted on DVD the first time around, my intern Mitch Schwartz had the pleasure of reviewing it. He adored it, praised it and gave some very deep thought about the content and what it meant. So, upbeat about the film and ready to give “2007 Academy Award Winner for Best Picture” a shot, I dove into it head first. Here’s my take on what came out of that…
Josh Brolin’s character, Llewelyn Moss is a married drifter who happens upon a drug deal gone bad. Instead of calling the police to clean up the mess, Moss decides to steal the money the drug dealers have left behind. As he is stealing the money, he finds a sole survivor (who is dying) who begs him for water. He declines, but finds himself needing to come back to supply the thug with water later. Because of his guilt, he lands himself between a deadman (the man he’s bringing the water to) and the guys who own the money he has stolen. From this point on he is on the run from this group of individuals. Unlucky for him, they have hired the right tracker, and insane person, to find him and kill him. This man, who has murdered many folk on his way to this point in the story, is named Anton. From this point in the story it’s just Llewelyn running from Anton and for good measure, a sheriff named Ed Bell is trying to stop them both.
Okay, to be fair, the story started out great. Anton is a horrible individual who is frightening to look at. Llewelyn is the anti-hero who you believe will win out at the end (not to ruin it for you), but it just doesn’t end up that way. I have no problem with the first three-fourths of the film. It seems pretty powerful and straightforward. The ending is abrupt, awful and senseless. It’s like the Coen brothers ran out of film (or money… or both) and said, “Let’s wrap this up! Kill so-in-so, make the ending feel like it’s artsy!” This is how I imagined the film ending. I simply didn’t get the ending, it literally ruined the rest of the film. If I had turned the film off three-fourths into it, I could see how this could win Best Picture. Because I watched the rest of it, because I felt it was awful, it just really didn’t grab me and say, “Do you see what everyone else sees?!!!” I just didn’t like it, it didn’t feel complete.
Looking further into the story, you have all these beautiful things about the film, captured in powerful moments. The best scene being, in my opinion, when Anton talks to the old man at the gas station. In that one particular moment you completely understand Anton’s quest, the thing that drives him. He is playing God, but using chance to decide fates. That type of scene is frightfully breathtaking. Another great moment in the film is when Anton tracks down Llewelyn at the hotel and the fiery gun exchange that occurs. Moments like these force you to be involved with the film, it’s almost scary. These are what make the film very intense and involving. Regretfully, it all comes back to the ending. The ending just ruined it for me. It ruined the entire experience and made me want to ask for my two-plus hours back.
So, did I think this should have won best picture for 2007? No. I think the Academy was in a pinch and it could have come in two different directions: 1. They felt like the Coens had been snubbed from past films and needed to give them an award. 2. They could not give Borat the best picture award. Either one of these, or both, could be a valid reason why this won best picture, because after thinking this through, the movie still fails at the end. I can’t forgive it and I can’t get over it, it just bugs me to death.
Blu in the face
No Country for Old Men looks absolutely gorgeous in HD. It shines well with the fancy cinematography that the Coens are known for in their films. The 80s backdrop does help to stylize most of the scenes in the film and casts a bright, vibrant picture on the Blu-ray that is unrivaled. The audio helps to reinforce the atmosphere and it sounds frightfully good in 5.1 HD. I couldn’t imagine watching this in any other format.
As for features, there are way too many to list. Let’s just say you get a boat load for the taking. For folks who love the Coen brothers and their films, you’ll be in heaven. just to name a few, you get behind the scenes featurettes, you get a very nice interview from Charlie Rose talking to the Coens (and some actors). You also get excellent additional featurettes with the Coens that does provide a bit more insight into this academy award winning film. All, in all, you’ll get one helluva blu-ray filled to the brim with extras.