Posting like ca-razy, plus a review
Dec. 13th, 2007 01:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
theatokosNo Country for Old Men, the new Cohen brothers film, is AMAZING. ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
alizarin71 took me out last night. It was grand to spend one on one time with him, eating sushi (well, he had fish, I did not) and seeing a film.
I haven't read the Cormac McCarthy book on which the film is based. After seeing the film, I still don't have a desire to. So I can't speak to how accurately the film sticks to the book, but my gut feeling is pretty closely. The more I think about NCfOM and how I was completely sucked in the more incredible I think the film is. It's beautifully shot: spare, stark and timeless (even though it is set in the early 80s). The dialog is minimal, allowing the story to move forward in a "show, don't tell" way. The acting is great and because the actors can't rely on lots of dialog, they are forced to inhabit their characters in expression and movement. Javier Bardem plays the sociopathic baddie, and holy cow, he's the freakiest, most absurd, and extremely frightening baddie to hit the screen in a long time. I hope he gets nominated for something for this role. Nothing is overtly outlandish, by letting the story unravel on its own, the very absurdity of the main character and the situation comes through in a natural way. In fact, the story telling is so good in this film that I wondered 3/4s of the way into the film who the director was - completely forgetting that I already knew it was a Cohen brothers movie.
The film is also very, very violent. But again, the way this unfolds is to the movie's and the director's credit. Much is implied. We see a pile of bodies, we see a trail of blood, we don't need to see the killing happen. And true to Cohen Brothers style, the sheer absurdity and/or tension of certain moments do allow for some laugh out loud moments, but never in a way that distracts from the momentum of the story.
One last thing that I find thrilling, but did not notice until the film was over and the credits rolling, is that there is no soundtrack to this movie. No music (except for the mariachi band that stumbles upon a wounded main character). Not when it opens, not during, and not until about 1 minute into the closing credits is there music. This adds to the barrenness of the film and stands in contrast to the generally bloated film making of current block-busters.
I really recommend this film, especially to film nerds and writers. Yeah,howilearned, I'm talking to you.
alizarin71 took me out last night. It was grand to spend one on one time with him, eating sushi (well, he had fish, I did not) and seeing a film. I haven't read the Cormac McCarthy book on which the film is based. After seeing the film, I still don't have a desire to. So I can't speak to how accurately the film sticks to the book, but my gut feeling is pretty closely. The more I think about NCfOM and how I was completely sucked in the more incredible I think the film is. It's beautifully shot: spare, stark and timeless (even though it is set in the early 80s). The dialog is minimal, allowing the story to move forward in a "show, don't tell" way. The acting is great and because the actors can't rely on lots of dialog, they are forced to inhabit their characters in expression and movement. Javier Bardem plays the sociopathic baddie, and holy cow, he's the freakiest, most absurd, and extremely frightening baddie to hit the screen in a long time. I hope he gets nominated for something for this role. Nothing is overtly outlandish, by letting the story unravel on its own, the very absurdity of the main character and the situation comes through in a natural way. In fact, the story telling is so good in this film that I wondered 3/4s of the way into the film who the director was - completely forgetting that I already knew it was a Cohen brothers movie.
The film is also very, very violent. But again, the way this unfolds is to the movie's and the director's credit. Much is implied. We see a pile of bodies, we see a trail of blood, we don't need to see the killing happen. And true to Cohen Brothers style, the sheer absurdity and/or tension of certain moments do allow for some laugh out loud moments, but never in a way that distracts from the momentum of the story.
One last thing that I find thrilling, but did not notice until the film was over and the credits rolling, is that there is no soundtrack to this movie. No music (except for the mariachi band that stumbles upon a wounded main character). Not when it opens, not during, and not until about 1 minute into the closing credits is there music. This adds to the barrenness of the film and stands in contrast to the generally bloated film making of current block-busters.
I really recommend this film, especially to film nerds and writers. Yeah,
howilearned, I'm talking to you.