I know it's my fault...

Rating: 5/10 (17 February 2008)

...since everybody says what a great film this is. The acting is great but that's the only redeeming thing about it, IMO, and the only reason I rated it as high as I did.
For me it was a total waste of time, and I went in expecting to love it because of critical reviews. Believe me, I know good does not always win, but the bleakness of this film was overwhelming, or should I say underwhelming.
On the other hand, I don't believe I've ever seen another Coen film, so I wasn't aware of how "quirky" their films really are, outside of knowing their reputations.
I disliked it so much that I seriously doubt I would ever consider seeing another film produced by the Coens. On the other hand, they're rich from doing stuff like this, so I must be wrong. Right?
PS -- I will add that I am offended by some of the pseudo-intellectual comments by some which insinuate that if you don't love this movie it proves you're really not very bright, not as bright as the people who feel this is one of the classics in film-making. Right. The texture and sub-plot layers got right past me. PPS -- In the interest of fairness I will say I read an interesting IMDb review about the allegories of this movie. Certainly others have alluded to that, but this reviewer did a masterful job of explaining the allegories as he understood them. I'm broad-minded enough to admit that the allegories he detailed escaped me, but could have been legitimate. Still, I feel a movie should entertain, and to entertain it has to follow enough of the normal conventions to make it enjoyable. NCFOM failed to do this.