It's the Coen brothers

Rating: 7/10 (29 July 2009)

In 1980, a Texan out hunting (Josh Brolin, looking eerily like his old man) stumbles across a large cache of drugs and $2 million in cash -- and several dead bodies, and impulsively decides to keep the money. He is on the run from that moment, pursued by a hired gun (Javier Bardem, who even with a Beatles-type haircut is scary as hell). A sheriff (Tommy Lee Jones) who has already had one run-in with the hired killer, is slowly figuring out what is going on. The film is a little on the long side, and requires patience as it is not told in the straightforward manner we are used to with most movies. In fact, at times it's downright weird, sort of like a David Lynch movie. That's because it is a Coen brothers flick, and these are the folks who gave us BLOOD SIMPLE and RAISING ARIZONA. Based on a novel, this will best appeal to fans of Coen brothers' movies and lovers of violence and gore. And there's plenty of that to go around. It certainly is several notches above the awful THERE WILL BE BLOOD, which came out around the same time. Woody Harrelson has a small but significant role as a freelance "problem solver" who is sent to dispatch the hired killer and retrieve the money. The movie is heavily focused on Brolin and Bardem, and they are both outstanding here.