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No Country for Old Men (2007) Review: “You can’t stop what’s coming. It ain’t all waiting on you”

 

{Non-Spoiler Review}



Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) is death. He is constantly stalking, brutal yet silent, and plays by a set of rules. Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) chose death by taking the $2 million dollars from the drug exchange gone wrong that he happened to stumble upon. For every step that Moss takes forward to escaping with the money, Chigurh takes two. These two actors play into their roles as if it was real life. With extreme focus here on Javier’s performance, hailed as the most realistic portrayal of a psychopath to date. One’s eyes are glued to the screen when this killer with a ridiculous bowl cut shows up to rip apart any progress that our rough and gruff “hero” makes in his journey.



Alongside our vigilante and murderer is the only hero in the story, Sheriff Ed Bell played by Tommy Lee Jones. The movie spends the most screen time on Moss, making one believe it is his story, but it is made clear by the end that this is actually Bell’s story, even when he is sitting at the third most screen time in the film by a large margin. A confusing decision there when it comes to screen time (not the only actor whose role has a much smaller impact then we are led to believe) loses connection the viewer is supposed to make with the Sheriff. Watching the movie, one’s focus is instead on a more interesting story with Moss, although it is not nearly as thought provoking as what Bell’s story really means.



What brings down the viewing of the movie is the way the climax is handled. Now without spoiling it, the movie ended exactly the way it should have. The characters all meet their logical conclusions with what they represent and have been working for the whole film. However, the pivotal scene is not displayed for the viewers eyes. It is disappointing to see the characters build up to the boiling point and then the actual event being barred from the movie goer’s eyes.

 

At the end of the day No Country for Old Men is an Academy Award winner for a reason. There are brilliant scenes packed masterfully in just over two hours. The story speaks to the viewer about multiple connected messages fit for a drama of its kind. Try not to get frustrated when the main plot gets pushed aside for the subplot because the hour and forty minutes before you get there are riveting.


★★★☆

76/100

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