Disappointing...

Rating: 6/10 (28 November 2007)

It definitely had its redeeming qualities, but overall I was rather let down and found it to be somewhat over-hyped. I expected this to be the Coen Brothers masterpiece thus far, a new level for them, but it still seemed to be the same old same old. Now Javier Bardem (where did this guy come from??) plays an excellent villain, you can see it in his eyes alone. He's completely ruthless and without a conscience to the point that it's just funny. And that's vintage Coen Brothers right there- this kind of black humor. There's some great dialogue, and even some classic moments of stylized violence that give it real potential. Watch for one memorable scene involving a very explosive diversion this villain creates outside a small-town pharmacy. The film moves at a rather slow pace, and taking place in the southwest, the Coen Brothers, as they did in "O Brother Where Art Thou," seem to rely too much on southern stereotypes for humor's sake rather than a true knowledge and understanding of the south. Still worth seeing.