Remarkably divisive film with as many detractors as it has defenders.

Rating: Null/10 (8 February 2008)

Based on a popular novel of the same name, this suspenseful character study traces the actions of three men tangled in a mess of stolen drug money, vengeance and pursuit. Brolin plays a low-income husband in 1980 Texas who, while hunting, comes upon the remnants of a drug deal gone bad. He discovers $2 million and takes off with it, but makes the mistake of returning to the scene later. Before he can even count the money, he's being pursued by various parties to the crime, primarily the driven, sociopathic and mysterious Bardem as a vicious hired killer. Attempting to sort out the mess, alternately trying to save Brolin and stop Bardem (who leaves a trail of bodies in his wake), is Jones, an aging sheriff who is finding his profession more and more futile. Brolin and Bardem play a very dangerous game of cat and mouse with Bardem stalking him through location after location and carrying one mean weapon, a pneumatic cattle gun that can knock the locks off of doors with one trigger pull. Jones uses Brolin's wife Macdonald to try to get him to give himself up, drawing her into the situation as well. Harrelson appears as another hit man, sent to retrieve the money for his own client Root. Brolin gives a terrific everyman performance, placing himself in a new category in the Hollywood echelon. He's a simple, stoic man with an ironic sense of integrity who makes a few wrong decisions. It's interesting to watch his resourcefulness unfold as his predicament worsens. Jones feels tailor-made for his role and effortlessly slips into the character's skin. It's an interesting counterpoint to the dogged and ferocious agent he portrayed years ago in "The Fugitive." Bardem is captivating and quite terrifying. His intensity, which contains just the slightest hint of dark humor, is amazing to behold. This exceedingly handsome actor is made to look almost ridiculous and yet he is a serious force to be reckoned with. His interchanges with various townsfolk and travelers are fascinating and tense to watch. Harrelson has almost a cameo role, but handles it effectively. Macdonald starts out seeming weak, but manages to turn in a memorable portrayal by the time of the dénouement. Harper appears briefly as Jones' supportive wife. They make a believable couple. Cute Dillahunt plays a green deputy, exchanging ideas about criminology with Jones as they investigate. Corbin has a small but effective bit part as a local man with a violent event in his past. Grant, humorously, but almost too cartoonishly, plays Macdonald's crotchety mother. A wondrous collection of actors gives quirky life to a variety of rural store owners, motel clerks and the like. The film has atmosphere and tension throughout. Surprisingly, but refreshingly, there is no music to speak of in the main course of the film. It avoids the traditional use of music which instructs the audience what to feel and when. Destined to be considered slow by some viewers, it takes its time to set the right moods and give full texture to the story and characters. Though many folks have lambasted the film for its inconclusive ending, it follows the book to a remarkable degree, up to and including the ending. Ultimately, it's a movie more memorable for its acting and its imagery rather than its plot line.