With good reason

Rating: 10/10 (28 February 2008)

Reason has come to life on the silver screen. But not as we know it. "No Country for Old Men" brings us reason as described by Neal Stephenson in "Snow Crash". Reason is a weapon. But not just any weapon. It's the ultimate weapon, wielded by a mysterious man (Bardem) the Sheriff (Jones) thinks is not a man at all, but a ghost. Retired welder Llewelyn Moss (Brolin) fails to read the signs. He pays a stiff price, for a very unreasonable act of charity, when he comes face to face with reason. It's a hopeless endeavor to point out subtle scenes or magical moments, simply because there are so many of them. At the same time, this movie is much more than a string of scenes. Suffice it to say neither human law nor divine intervention have any way of stopping the sheriff's lonesome ride into the darkness. While the movie meets the high standards of superior craftsmanship and quirky humor we have come to expect from the Coen brothers, it also achieves a new level of coherence and subtlety. It's much closer to "Blood Simple" and "Fargo" than to "The Big Lebowski" or "Intolerable Cruelty". It's also a tribute to past masters of the genre. Just as Sheriff Bell tries to prove himself worthy of the legacy of long-forgotten law enforcement officers, the directors try to hold their own in the celebrated company of John Ford, Howard Hawks, John Sturges, or Fred Zinnemann. I think it's safe to say the old-timers would welcome the brothers at their table.