A Good but not Great Movie!

Rating: 8/10 (16 April 2009)

First off, I was surprised by all the negative comments, but I kind of felt that way after the first viewing of this film. It's typical Coen Brothers fare which means you come out of the theater saying, "Huh?, What was that all about?" This one definitely ended before the end, in mid-story. Did Chigurh get away or does he die halfway down the block? Where is the money? Why did Sheriff Ed Tom Bell quit the chase? What happened to Carla Jean Moss? Did she win or lose the coin toss? I'm sure there are more questions but these would be the top questions. I, for one, am not fond of movies that you have to figure out. Those with multiple plot twists or flashbacks & flash-forwards. I favor a simple story well told. Still, I found value in "No Country... The casting and acting was superb, from Javier Bardem's chilling Chigurh, Tommy Lee Jones' Sheriff Ed Tom's frustration at the world of the 80s to smaller roles like Barry Corbin's Ellis and Beth Grant as Carla Jean's cynical mother. The cinematography by Roger Deakins and the music score by Carter Burwell were topnotch as always. It was pretty gory but so was Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, and many other popular films. I think a second viewing helps the film a lot. Many films that I found mediocre on first viewing became some of my favorites after further viewings. Did it deserve its Oscar for Best Picture? No, but the Oscar was awarded for Fargo which lost its Best Picture Oscar to, of all things, "The English Patient". The Academy always gets it wrong.