No Country for Old Men

UK Release Date: 18 January 2008

Certification: 15

Director: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen

Cast: Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Garret Dillahunt, Woody Harrelson, Tommy Lee Jones, Kelly Macdonald

Rating: 94%

Thoroughly deserving of all its recognition.

Review:

No Country for Old Men is a visceral movie experience created by the Coen brothers. The modern western centres around Llewelyn Moss’ attempted getaway with $2 million from serial killer, Anton Chigurh. The visual storytelling, stunning shots and unique characters combine for one of the best movies I’ve ever seen.

The three central performances are pivotal to the success of No Country for Old Men. Josh Brolin delivers the best performance of his career. Llewelyn Moss shows that anybody can get mixed up with the wrong people due to Brolin's intimate portrayal. Javier Bardem really shines as psychopath Anton Chigurh. He's almost on a par with Heath Ledger's Joker in terms of how great of a villain he is. He just epitomises evil. Chigurh is calculated, meticulous and precise. In all honesty, Bardem gives one of the best performances of all time and he thoroughly deserved the Oscar. Although saying that, I absolutely loved Tommy Lee Jones' portrayal of Sheriff Ed Tom Bell. He chews up the scenery in every single scene and all of his lines are iconic.  

Despite the movie's outstanding performances, legendary cinematographer, Roger Deakins is the main star of No Country for Old Men. With a filmography including 1917, Blade Runner 2049 and The Shawshank Redemption it's to be expected that the cinematography would be out of this world. Every shot is deliberately placed and painstakingly beautiful. 

Ethan and Joel Coen's direction also enhances the experience of No Country for Old Men. It's clear they chose to make the movie they envisioned. There is no doubt No Country for Old Men is primarily a modern western but there are horror undertones sown throughout with a psychopathic killer and constant tension. The Coen brothers also treat the audience intelligently. They allow audiences to put the pieces together leaving certain aspects of the story ambiguous - down to the audience's perception the events that took place before. 

An easy way to demonstrate just how incredible No Country for Old Men really is, is that for it's two hour run time I didn't realise that there wasn't a score (only 16 minutes worth). On paper this seems like an awful decision - as a terrific score can make a great movie one of the best of all time - but it only heightens the tension making parts of the movie an unsettling, terrifying watch. 

I've seen some complaints about the death scenes but that simply adds to the true beauty of No Country for Old Men. Characters die off screen which subverts all expectations. And I genuinely believe that No Country for Old Men will go down as one of the best movies of the century.