Cowboys & Coens.

 

At this point, I daresay that True Grit is hardly a "new" film by the Coen Brothers considering it's been almost a month since I've seen it and this review is just now being posted.  Eh, whaddya want?  I'm thankful I was just able to get this review up at all.

There's a moment in True Grit that made me immediately flashback to a great western.  When main characters Rooster Cogburn and Mattie Ross are on top of a rickety cabin's roof and they look down to witness the approaching villains confront Matt Damon's Le Boeuf, I was instantly reminded of George Roy Hill's masterpiece, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, when Paul Newman and Robert Redford look down from atop a cliff to witness the villains approaching in the dusty and rocky valley below who have been tracking them for several days.

But I don't think this is the time for me to get all nostalgic. (Although perhaps it helps this review out considerably.) I made a severe mistake when going into this movie, which was that I was expecting a Coen Brothers western, and instead I just got a traditional western.  This is strange considering that the Coens stated in an interview with TIME magazine that they didn't watch any classic Westerns or even the original True Grit before making this film.

So what am I saying? Is True Grit not a Coen Brothers movie?  Yes, it most certainly is, but I would suffice to say it's "Coen Brothers Lite".  It has all the makings of a passion piece from Joel & Ethan, with longtime Coen director of photography Richard Deakins providing the sweeping western landscapes and a somewhat demented performance from Josh Brolin as the film's main villain.  Matt Damon's LeBoeuf plays out well as the sidekick who seems to hold everything together.  The quirky characters are there, the sweeping cinematography, even the Coen mainstay of the "character behind a desk"*, but just don't expect a Miller's Crossing version of the western.

The story of Rooster Cogburn is told very straightforward.  And basically it's The Dude with a lasso and a horse.  OK, no it isn't, but wouldn't that be a great movie? ("Hey, careful, fellow gunslinger, there's a beverage here!")

The film also has an interesting supporting character, Carter Burwell's score. Burwell has scored and supervised the music in every single Coen Brothers movie, and I believe this to be one of his best.  In a moment of sheer geekiness, I found myself humming along to the music as I watched it the film in the theater. I'm not sure if that personifies an avid movie watcher or a pathetic cinephile crying out for help. Whatever the case, it still added sheer flavor to the film, at least for me.

Then there's Hailee Steinfeld, a wonderful young actress who makes an impressive debut here.  However, it was the opinion of this blogger that her performance somewhat dilapidates into a minor annoyance.  Now, having never seen the original True Grit (yeah, The Duke bores me, sorry.) or never having read the novel, perhaps the character of Mattie Ross was intended to be that way, with her fast-talking delivery and her know-it-all attitude, but it became repetitive and I think I might have had a flashback to Jennifer Jason Leigh's character in the Coens' underrated gem, The Hudsucker Proxy. (Which, now that I think about it, was quite the annoyance as well.) 

So True Grit 2010 isn't a masterpiece, and I firmly believe that the Coens have done better, but compared to the mess that was The Ladykillers (or the "Tom-Hanks-channels-Mark-Twain show"), it's a welcome addition to the J&C filmography.

So would I recommend this True Grit redux?

In the words of Sidney J. Mussberger: "Yeah, yeah! Sure, sure!"


True Grit, 2010
Grade: B+

*In every Coen Brothers movie, there has always been a character sitting behind a desk, which usually is the main character or a character that will drive the plot or actions of another character (i.e. Jerry Lundergaard in Fargo, Leo in Miller's Crossing, Jeffery Lebowski in The Big Lebowski, or Jack Lipnick in Barton Fink).