Unorthodox, memorable, thought-provoking

Rating: 7/10 (25 February 2008)

There is nothing mainstream about Oscar Best Picture winner No Country for Old Men, so don't expect a crowd-pleaser.
Unorthodox in its pacing, derisive humor, thought-provoking sequences and uh, weaponry, directors Ethan and Joel Coen leave a lot for the audience's interpretation (reportedly more illuminated in the book by Cormac Macarthy) but throws in a number of memorable scenes.
Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) is a hunter that stumbles upon a case of cash from a drug-deal gone wrong. He makes the mistake of returning to the scene of the crime and the hunter becomes the hunted: by Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem), the police led by Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones), Carson Wells (Woody Harrelson) and the Mexican mafia.
Bardem deserves his Best Supporting Actor Oscar. You will think twice about laughing at a guy with a bowl cut again, nor someone that seems to innocently be holding a gas tank with a hose. He will also come to mind the next time you encounter a coin toss. In fact, his character steals so much from the rest of the movie that his face is all this movie's poster has to fill.
Not that the rest of the cast don't deliver. It's just that it unravels so slowly, it's only in scenes where he appears that you sit up and really watch. Jones surprisingly plays a weak character here, and Harrelson has a small part, too (but apparently a personal one). Kelly Macdonald is a revelation as Llewelyn's wife, Carla Jean, who stands her own against Anton in their fateful meeting.
The ending begs another discussion altogether.