If you have not seen this movie, do not read this article. This film has been in my top ten films of all time since I first saw it in the theatre. Actually, probably after a second or third viewing, I appreciated more. There are tons of reasons why No Country for Old Men should be considered a great film.
Right off the top, it’s incredibly well shot, has tons of excellent actors, tense pacing, and very little excess baggage. Every scene means something or, at the very least, is intriguing and well-acted. This film is a mixture of crime thriller and modern Western, all rolled up into one awesome product. Deep existential themes are running throughout the entire film. Free will is juxtaposed with fate. Do people have free will? Are people capable of change?
There is only really one character that is the same person throughout the film. The initial protagonist, Llewellyn Moss, is the same character throughout the story. He is consistently doing what he thinks is right each step of his journey. In this way, he is very masculine and, more often than not, virtuous. He makes a decision and sticks to it; he sees things through. He could have potentially never been caught if he simply hadn’t returned to the dying man with that jug of water – for some reason, he does. He can’t sleep knowing that someone is out there dying in the desert. It’s the type of scene that makes the film believable. His actions are something we can relate with.
Anton, the antagonist, is a man consumed with fate. He really only believes in chance or fate. This is illustrated with the coin more than once, and even money cannot change his mind once he believes it is someone’s fate to die or be allowed to live. Carson Wells can’t convince him to let him go, even though he offers him thousands of dollars and he poses no real threat to Anton’s mission. Carson is a man that values money above fate, or anything else. Despite knowing who he is dealing with, Carson still naively tries to change Anton’s mind. Carla Jean tries to change Anton’s mind in her own way. She tries to understand him and reason with him. Although, she ultimately accepts her fate, unlike Carson.
Sheriff Ed Bell is a little more complex. He seems to want to believe he can make a difference and does everything he can to protect Llewellyn and Carla Jean. By the end of the movie, Sherriff Bell comes to the conclusion that he really can’t stop fate or all these horrible things from happening; eventually, he decides to give up being a lawman and retires. Ed also has a great scene with his older cousin, Ellis. His cousin asks him why he retired, to which Ed replies, “I feel overmatched.” Ellis offers him sage advice during that piece of dialogue. He says, “after a while you have to just put a tourniquet on it” and “you can’t stop what’s coming.”
You gotta keep going, keep living, and simply do the best you can. Ellis’ advice doesn’t mean nothing matters, or that you shouldn’t try. Towards the end of the film, Ed realizes he has a new life as a retired sheriff, and life keeps going on. He has to find out what to do in this next chapter, and his diseased father will be waiting on him whenever he gets there. This isn’t really a comforting message, but I think it’s a fairly accurate summation about life. Life doesn’t wait on you, and you need to keep going no matter what.
Llewellyn is a more interesting character. If there is a “hero” in this film, it’s him. He tries to do what’s right and he makes some decent decisions along the way. Llewellyn doesn’t give up and comes close to “winning.” He even battles with the unstoppable antagonist, something no one in the film has done before. Could Llewellyn have made better decisions? Of course, but he makes a good showing of it. And, Josh Brolin does an admirable job in portraying the role of the tough and resourceful good old boy.
He’s a hunter and soon becomes the prey, but he doesn’t ask for anyone else’s help and he tries to make the best out of a horrifying situation. He tries to clean up his own mess, so to speak. This is far more than most men do today and it’s what everyman should do. See, in many ways, Llewellyn is an “everyman” character. But, in today’s country, that man is far from most men. Llewellyn has fortitude, like his girl says: “He don’t quit.”
We are living in a country without the men of previous generations. We see the results today. Give this film a watch, you won’t be disappointed.
-By JJ, Old Dominion Cavalier
O I’m a good old rebel, now that’s just what I am. For this “fair land of freedom” I do not care at all. I’m glad I fit against it, I only wish we’d won, And I don’t want no pardon for anything I done.
Agree. A truly great film. The novel is great, too.
Cormac McCarthy has written a number of novels; I’ve only read three, “No Country for Old Men,” “All the Pretty Horses,” and “The Road.” He has a dystopian vision, part of which is our country’s loss of real men.
These are not necessarily good men, or moral men, or Arthurian knights, although many of his characters have trace of that. I supposed the best descriptor is the modern “based.” But they are necessary men, necessary for the proper functioning of society.
Our country produced a lot of those kind of men prior to WW II. They were actually kind of common. Very rare today.
It really is an excellent movie, I vividly remember seeing it in the theater when it first came out in the theater. As with Fight Club and American Psycho, I immediately went out and read the book because I was so impressed with the story.
For those who haven’t read Cormac McCarthy’s eponymous book, I’d say they nailed the casting and remained very faithful to the original story. Unlike the movies adapted from the Thomas Harris’s Hannibal novels the violence was less lurid and titillating. Anton Chigurh used radio tracking tags and detective work to find drug money. He was the embodiment of a violent reality, not a violent fantasy.
Even more than “No Country for Old Men” the movie Sicario is a graphic representation of what the new world is. The Reconquista of Aztlan is well underway, adapt accordingly.
“You should move to a small town where the rule of law still applies. This is the land of wolves now, and you are not a wolf.”
https://youtu.be/aDJJBMXiwiI
Another film buff joining the ranks, eh? Few things I enjoy discussing more. Nice piece, sir.