No Country for Old Men - Review

"You can't stop what's coming. It ain't all waiting on you. That's vanity" – A review of No Country for Old Men. 

Some films are tricky to categorise, and No Country for Old Men is very much one of them. Released in 2007 and directed by the Coen brothers, the film is technically a neo – Western crime thriller but it plays out more like a grim mediation on violence and fate – and how little control any of us really have.

The plot follows three main characters: Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin), Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) and Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones). Whilst out hunting, Llewelyn Moss comes across the remnants of a drug deal – including left behind cash. Despite knowing better, the temptation is too great to resist, so he takes the cash with him – attracting unwanted attention from the hitman Anton Chigurh, a merciless killer who sets out to hunt Moss down for the money. Sheriff Ed Tom Bell is an aging lawman, reflecting on a dark secret of his own and a changing world, and is also looking for Moss in order to protect him. Whilst the plot is seemingly simple – a man finds money, is hunted by a killer and law enforcement tries to intervene – the Coen brothers have in fact created something way more philosophical and, to be quite frank, bleak. Choices seem futile, chance shapes each encounter and consequence, and when there is violence – which is often – it's not heroic. It's inevitable.

This film is an examination of the random nature of evil. Chigurh is unstoppable, completely unfazed by reasoning, and represents fate or death, whilst Sheriff Bell represents the old-world crumbling in the face of a new generation of senseless cruelty and violence. The title of the film is borrowed from a poem by Yeats, and suggests the exhaustion of men who don't even recognise the world they live in anymore.

Javier Bardem's Chigurh is still an amazing villain – emotionless and meticulous, he's almost alien in how disconnected he seems from empathy and kindness. His coin toss scenes in particular are chilling, as morality is stripped down to nothing more than chance. Josh Brolin as Moss is quiet yet tough, making him believable as someone smart enough to survive but not quite smart enough to outrun destiny. Tommy Lee Jones gives the film its heart; his weary eyes tell a whole story of loss. Even the supporting cast, such as Kelly Macdonald as Moss's wife Carla Jean and Woody Harrelson as the doomed bounty hunter Carson Wells deliver perfectly understated performances – each character feels believable and real.

The Texan desert looks both beautiful and brutal in this film. The sunlight is harsh, the shadows deep, and the wide, open spaces feel suffocating. The Coens famously opted for almost no score, the silence only heightening the tension and suspense throughout. You hear the hum of the wind, the click of a gun, footsteps on gravel, so every small sound feels amplified, keeping you on edge throughout.

I really enjoyed this film. No Country for Old Men isn't just about justice or revenge, but it's about what happens when human decency is lost to chaos and the inevitable violence that people are capable of. Sure, it's a slow burn, and there's little in the way of sentimentality to be found, but that's why it's still such a compelling watch. Sharp and relentless, I cannot recommend this film enough.

Written by Tam Page

Posted by Mr. Tomney

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