A fantastic film, well worthy of the praise it receives.

Rating: 9/10 (28 February 2008)

For me, the Coen Brothers had been on a downwards slope since 2000's O Brother, Where Art Thou, which is certainly not to say it was a bad film, nor was The Man Who Wasn't There for that matter. They were both good films, but certainly not as good as what had proceeded them, and with Intolerable Cruelty it seemed as though the Coens had lost their touch.
To say that No Country For Old Men is a blazing return to form would almost be selling it short, it is quite simply the equal of any film that the Coens have made before, perhaps even a crowning achievement in a spectacular career, and coming from an admitted Big Lebowski fanatic, that's high praise indeed.
While most synopsises of the film will tell you that it's about a hunter who finds $2 million, and ends up with a cold blooded killer hunting him down, it's much more than that. It's mainly to do with the Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) who acts as narrator for us, his contemplations, realisations, and the story of the $2 million is essentially second fiddle to this character arc, because while it's pivotal, it plays out through Bell's interpretations. Killer Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) appears throughout the film like a force of nature, rather than a real person, and we never really get any insight into him, because Sheriff Bell doesn't understand him; he is a caricature of violence. Likewise, hunter Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) seems to be a much more well rounded character, because he is known by the Sheriff.
Now, while the story of Moss's flee with the money isn't exactly the point of the film, it's something told to us by the narrator as a catalyst for his decisions, it's still a remarkably compelling tale, and it's done so well that if you want to ignore the deeper arc of Tommy Lee Jones's character, and simply focus on the game of cat and mouse between Moss and Chigurh, I think you can do that and still come out of the film with a fantastic experience, and I would say that aspect of the film is what will bring people back for repeat viewings.
What the Coens have done here, is crafted what is quite easily their most tense, thrilling, and action packed film yet. The action is quite frightening at times in the way it plays out, and the tension in some scenes had me almost holding my breath in anticipation. Violence in No Country is similar to that you'd find in one of Takeshi Kitano's Yakuza thrillers, or David Cronenberg's recent films, visceral and authentic, serving to shock the viewer rather than excite them, and it's something I'd like to see more of.
Before seeing the film, I had read a lot in passing about Javier Bardem's performance, but he truly exceeded my expectations. I don't think I've seen anyone who absolutely extrudes menace like this before, you genuinely feel afraid for any character who in his presence. He actually manages to out-do Dennis Hopper in Blue Velvet, he turns in that disturbing a performance. That Oscar was well and truly deserved here.
Without wanting to gush, it's simply astounding how good this film is. The direction and cinematography is on absolute top form, and for once I think the Academy got it right in awarding those aspects, because every shot in the film is starkly beautiful and action scenes play out in sheer relentlessness, almost like in James Cameron's The Terminator, with a bleak overwhelming sense of dread always looming.
Overall, it's just a masterpiece, and I would highly recommend it.