A gripping thriller that depicts the struggle of society to agree on a moral code and ethical way to live life.

Rating: 10/10 (15 March 2017)

The film No Country for Old Men, an adaptation from the novel written by Cormac McCarthy, is a chilling visual representation of the human struggle to define and live by a moral code. With the story taking place in the countryside of Texas in the 1980's, Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin), discovers the crime scene of a drug deal gone wrong, and decides to take the two million dollars he finds among the bodies and drugs. Almost immediately, the psychopathic murderer, Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem), and the Mexican drug dealers who hired him, begin to hunt Moss and the money. Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) and his fellow officers investigate the drug deal and begin connecting the murders of Chigurh, and it is Bell's mission to bring justice to the criminals and protect the innocent.
As Moss tries to evade Chigurh's deathly cattle air gun using his survival skills and experience from serving in the military, there are several sequences where intensity and suspense entrance the viewer as Moss is chased by the drug dealer's dog, and later when a shootout unfolds, leaving both Moss and Chigurh injured. Moss escapes across the border to a Mexican hospital, and Chigurh kills the person who has been hired to find him, and threatens to kill Moss's wife, Carla Jean, who has been hiding since Moss took the money. While Moss is en route to find his wife, he picks up a hitchhiker; however, the Mexican drug dealers at a motel kill both. Chigurh arrives later, retrieves the money, and returns it to the owner. Chigurh continues to hunt Carla Jean, and finds her at her grandmother's house, still killing her though Moss is already dead. As Chigurh leaves the scene, the gun he used to commit the murders was stolen, and he gets away. The film ends with Sheriff Bell expressing his feelings of failure in solving the crimes and he decides to retire.
The three main characters in the film live their life under very different values and ethical standards. Chigurh operates as a destructive force to any moral code, as we even first see him escaping prison, symbolizing how he cannot be controlled by the system. Later, Chigurh leaves the fate of the store-owner up to chance by flipping a coin, and he continually demonstrates behaviors outside of the typical social norms. For example, Chigurh drinks the milk from Moss's refrigerator after he enters his home, and sleeps in Carla Jean's bed when searching for her. Moss's sense of entitlement and power is evident in way he talks to the landlady, expecting her to release private information about Moss to him. Ultimately, Chigurh follows through in killing Carla Jean, despite Moss being dead, as if it was his internal moral duty.
Sheriff Bell represents the justice system, and has had his moral framework built by law and truth. Bell appears to have a strong sense of what is right versus wrong, and feels obligated to bring justice to his community. In his monologues, Bell reflects on how society has changed and he struggles in processing the "evils" that have been increasing in society. This is reinforced in the end when Bell surrenders to the fight for the good, and feels defeated in being able to protect his community and in seeking justice.
Moss's moral code lies somewhere in between Chigurh's and Bell's. A veteran from the war, Moss is independent and appears to believe he is acting under free will for duration of the film. Moss took the money from the crime scene, however, returned to give the surviving man water after experiencing guilt. This sense of right and wrong has been created internally and is shaped by his prior experiences. Moss is a survivor and veteran, but also breaks the law in creating a sawed off shotgun. Moss is a married man, and appears to have a strong moral center in protecting those that he cares about and the innocent. Moss's actions are independent, but the viewer is able to see that Moss has a sense of what is right and wrong for him, but that it is dependent on the situation.
Within the film, various techniques were used to highlight the theme of morality, including camera angles and lighting. For example, there are many high-angle shots throughout the film, especially when Chigurh is killing a victim or cleaning himself afterwards. This high-angle shot is a reflection of how Chigurh operates outside of any typical moral code, and his belief in fate. The lighting also appears to be carefully constructed throughout the film. Throughout the film, there is a repeated use of shadows to both enhance the mood and depict good versus evil. Interestingly, Moss's character is often shown half lit, symbolizing the moral code by which he operates, as it is somewhere between the "good" and "evil" of both Bell and Chigurh.
Some critics could compare the film to that of Fargo, another Coen brother's film, as both have a plot where a law enforcement figure is challenged with protecting their community from a killer, however, No Country for Old Men uses admirable craftsmanship in the production to tell the story and tie the themes together. Viewers will find themselves holding their breath and be aware of the silence that accompanies a large portion of the film while reflecting on the parallels to society and the moral codes we see or choose to follow.