Logic to a fault

Rating: 10/10 (22 December 2011)

No music. The sound we can sometimes hear is like the pulsating of a gong. The impression it conveys is that of waves spreading in circles on a still water surface after it has been disturbed by an object. It is heard whenever the characters are confronted with the results of their past decisions – the waves' inexorable advance, often stirred far back in the past. Naturally, people try to influence this course, but the best they can do is confuse the pattern – in the end, the waves will hit the shore.. The symbol for this type of fate is Chigurh: "You've been putting it up – your whole live .. The coin has been traveling twenty-two years to get here." All who have to deal with him try to change the course of events but only manage to disrupt the pattern: Moss cunningly escapes several traps while sheriff Bell remains in constant pursuit, unable to catch up with his "ghost". We must accept that our decisions will have uncontrollable effects in the future – we are part of this world and we have not much influence on what is coming. Maybe Chigurh made his decision during the war which convinced him that mankind obeys its rules and morals only to its own convenience. "If the rule you followed brought you to this, of what use was the rule?" It seems that his logical conclusion is to leave the system of rights and responsibilities and to refuse the abstract world of human ideas and values which make our society work. What we can learn: think ahead of what might follow your actions and then make the right decision – you won't be able to correct your mistakes later. Don't even try to "get back what's been taken from you" – lingering in the past won't help, "you can't stop what's coming. Ain't all waiting on you ... That's vanity." Thankfully, this film leaves us the freedom to judge for ourselves: we perceive things close up, from the characters' points of view and no music guides and influences our perception of the events.