Disappointing

Rating: 6/10 (9 January 2008)

I went into this film with high expectations. So, that being said I would still consider this a worthwhile film to go and see but I was left surprised at the critical acclaim the film had received. It wasn't that special.
I have never been a huge follower of the Coen brothers work. I love Fargo but that's really it. Their films are usually a little abstract. This story follow a retired welder Llewellyn Moss (Josh Brolin), who whilst deer hunter in the Texas desert stumbles across half a dozen corpses in what seems a drug-deal gone wrong. He also comes across $2 million in cash in a brief case and decides to keep it. The rightful owners of the money (Mexicans) find out the identity of Llewellyn, whose truck was found at the scene and they send a ruthless hit-man Anton Chigarr (Javier Berdum) to recover the money. Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) is on a mission to try and protect Moss and in doing so, catch the elusive Chigarr.
The performance of Bardum as the villain Chigarr, is what makes this film worthwhile watching. It is one of the most chilling characters on the big screen for years and any scene he was in makes you sit up and take notice.
Sadly, the same cannot be said for other characters, particularly Tommy Lee Jones' role as the Sheriff who I found progressively more uninteresting throughout. **SPOILERS*** And this is my major criticism of the film (and I know I'm not alone here) because the Sheriff's character deliver a couple of monologues in the film that were crucial in conveying the themes in the film, particularly the last scene. But by the last scene monologue, I had tuned out because the Sheriff's character was so boring. Upon watching the film again, some obscure dream described in a monotone monologue is not the way to conclude a film or make a definitive point. The fact that many were looking around confused when the credits rolled is never a sign of concise film-making. Not having an ending shouldn't always be applauded. Sometimes it is lazy storytelling and I have to think that this was the case here. ***SPOILERS END*****
To be honest, it is hard to see what themes in the film haven't been explored before. There is nothing groundbreaking here. If the film was a good old fashion, lone ranger versus a ruthless Drug-lord - fine. In the sense the film is more than satisfactory. But the film purports to be so much more. And the attempt by the film to get these points across to the viewer was disappointing and lacked imagination. Cinematography was great and some of the action scenes were terrific. But at the end of the day, I'd only class this film as worthwhile, nothing more.