Coen Bros.

crash_override · 04-08-2010, 11:15 PM

No Country for Old Men absolutely has a 'Western' vibe.

TheCunningStunt · 04-09-2010, 10:49 AM

No Country For Old Men is a western. They had cowboy hats. What more do you people want?!

lucifer_sam · 04-09-2010, 11:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Janszoon

Considering that westerns as a genre are largely defined by taking place during a particular time period, I would say no, No Country For Old Men is not a western. For that matter, the plot doesn't particularly resemble a western either.

A John Ford-type western wouldn't make sense in today's world, though. It's as close to a modern western as you're going to get, except the "wild west" is replaced with a portrait of modern-day crime (albeit exaggerated) in the Rio Grande delta.

It's pretty silly to stick to genre definitions, especially considering how poorly Coen brothers films fit into pre-existing categories.

DoctorSoft · 04-09-2010, 09:46 PM

I've only seen A Serious Man, but I loved it, I'm probably gonna see Fargo this weekend.

TheCunningStunt · 04-09-2010, 10:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theuglyorgan

I've only seen A Serious Man, but I loved it, I'm probably gonna see Fargo this weekend.

Their best film! Good choice.

**Janszoon** · 04-10-2010, 05:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boo boo

Are you kidding?

No, I'm not kidding. Aside from the fact that it takes place in Texas, it has very little in common with a western. I think people are getting hung up on some idea that cowboy hats=western.

Quote:

Originally Posted by boo boo

The mood and narrative is totally like a western, and it is set in Texas, a place where a lot of people still have a cowboy mentality, which the 3 main characters in the film all have.

I suppose the mood being dark is similar to a handful of westerns. But it's more typical of something like film noir.

Quote:

Originally Posted by boo boo

I mean, Chigruh is just your traditional mysterous badass that's typical of many westerns, Tom Bell is your kind hearted sheriff trying to do right and Moss is a conflicted guy who does some questionable things in the persuit of a better life and is in way over his head.

Those three archetypes you just described are more typically film noir archetypes. The traditional mysterious badass in westerns is typically the good guy, for example. Moss as a character is straight out of film noir 101. And Tom Bell was such a poorly developed character that I find it hard to give him any specific context, he could fit into basically any genre as just "generic sherif/police chief".

**Janszoon** · 04-10-2010, 05:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheCunningStunt

No Country For Old Men is a western. They had cowboy hats. What more do you people want?!

That's just how people dress in that part of the world. Saying every movie with cowboys hats is a western is like saying every movie with tuxedoes is a spy movie.

boo boo · 04-10-2010, 05:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Janszoon

Those three archetypes you just described are more typically film noir archetypes. The traditional mysterious badass in westerns is typically the good guy, for example. Moss as a character is straight out of film noir 101. And Tom Bell was such a poorly developed character that I find it hard to give him any specific context, he could fit into basically any genre as just "generic sherif/police chief".

C'mon, Tommy Lee Jones is awesome in that film, I don't think his character is poorly developed at all, he says a lot with just his gestures and expressions and it's his helplessness and loss of faith that makes the whole theme of the story. He's not like most movie sheriffs who serve mostly as a plot device or antagonist or whatever, he's not just comic relief, he's a lovable guy but also helpess and defeated. Again, he seems like the least important character in the movie, but he's really the most important regarding the theme of it all.

Even if he's based on old traditional archtype, I don't think that makes him poorly developed, archtypes are an important tool in storytelling and it's up to the actor to give that archtype a distinctive touch and personality, and it's one of Jones' best performances.

**Janszoon** · 04-10-2010, 06:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boo boo

C'mon, Tommy Lee Jones is awesome in that film, I don't think his character is poorly developed at all, he says a lot with just his gestures and expressions and he's a rather conflicted soul, lovable but helpless.

It may be an old traditional archtype, but I don't think that makes him poorly developed, archtypes are an important tool in storytelling and it's up to the actor to give that archtype a distinctive touch and personality, and it's one of Jones' best performances.

I totally disagree. I didn't find the character to be archetypal, just generic. The poorly written characters are one of the main reasons I found the movie so disappointing, especially coming from the Coens.

boo boo · 04-10-2010, 06:05 AM

WTF.

I thought the characters were great, any of the 3 of them are interesting enough to have a movie of their own. Harrison was great in his little role too.

04-09-2010, 10:49 AM	#22 (permalink)
TheCunningStunt love will tear you apart Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Manchester, UK. Posts: 5,107	No Country For Old Men is a western. They had cowboy hats. What more do you people want?! __________________ I don't feel and I feel great. Last FM

04-09-2010, 09:46 PM	#24 (permalink)
DoctorSoft Rocket Appliances Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 1,335	I've only seen A Serious Man, but I loved it, I'm probably gonna see Fargo this weekend.