Very Good

Rating: 8/10 (27 October 2008)

I was distracted at the start. It didn't engage me. It was a bit slow and not much happened. I like Malkovich but i didn't really want to watch him anymore after seeing so much of how funny Brad Pitt looked from the trailer.
Don't read into it that much, the start was still better than half of the generic movies out there right now but it didn't match up to the rest of the movie. This doesn't mean that Malkovich is the short straw either as he and his character do get a lot better.
Brad Pitt as I pretty much already guessed stole the show. Just as Robert Downey Jr. in Tropic Thunder and even though in a whole different context Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight. If he doesn't get his 2nd Oscar nod (maybe 3rd if The Curious Case gets him one as well) for this then there is something cruelly wrong with this world. He's a shoe in for the golden globe nomination at least.
The plot is so Coen-esquire that you just can't help but smile the whole way through the film, even through some deliciously dark parts. Its laugh out loud funny and subtle funny at the same time. It's quick, sharp and breathtaking film-making.
Stellar performances from Pitt, McDormand and the minimally used J.K Simmons with apt help from Clooney make this the Coens best non serious movie since The Dude's last sip of his white Russian.