A film about romanticism, illusion, greed, and the consequences of ones actions

Rating: 9/10 (8 December 2007)

I think the main theme of the film is romanticism. Its certainly an American trait, nostalgia. Nostalgia distilled down is romanticism. Romanticism is fantasy, illusion.
The Sheriff played by Tommy Lee Jones goes on and on about the old days, and about how great things were. Like evil is some modern invention, one that he is scared of and doesn't want to understand. He is always one step behind the murderer in the film. And when he's closest to the murderer. When he finds out he's too late, he isn't upset, he is relieved. This tells us a lot about the character.
The father of the Sheriff offers the best advice to the Sheriff and exposes his truth. The Sheriff not wanting to accept reality is vanity. The Sheriff is exposed as a weak and almost childlike character that refuses to grow up and accept reality. How can you fight crime if you refuse to accept and understand evil? Its a poignant analysis of aging, and how romanticism and nostalgia can stop your development as a person.
The other main part of the story is about easy money, and greed. The Moss character is a welder who is thrilled with the prospect of 'easy money' despite the incredible risk he puts his family in. In fact the hit-man tells his wife of this at the time of her death. And as blunt as it is its true.
The killer in the film is more like a force of nature than a real hit-man. He is like the dark side of people they refuse to acknowledge. Most of the characters in the film have set out their own course of destruction. They just don't have the capacity to understand the forces they have set against themselves.
Overall very good film, escapes all the clichés of modern Hollywood. This film is reminiscent of 1970's style cinema. Gritty dark stories, with a solid framework of allegory, and an exposure of all sides of the human condition. Hopefully this is the Coens leading the charge to a return to true, free, Cinema.
Who better to lead than the Coens? Great stuff, this is a film I wont soon forget.