Visit ‘No Country’

December 13, 2007

By SCOTT WEISSER The Goshen News Thu Dec 13, 2007, 11:15 AM EST

Llewelyn Moss is a decent-enough guy who makes a poor decision.

Out hunting in scenic West Texas, Moss happens upon shot-up vehicles, dead bodies and a whole lot of dope. Not unclever, he figures this is a drug deal gone wrong.

Moss soon makes off with $2 million in uncollected cash, and his troubles begin.

“No Country for Old Men” is a cautionary tale and a great piece of work. It’s another winner for filmmaking siblings Joel and Ethan Coen (“Fargo,” “Raising Arizona,” “Barton Fink,” etc.) The Coens are genetically incapable of making bad movies.

“No Country” is set in 1980, and $2 million tax-free is a lot. Moss (Josh Brolin) sees the money as the ticket to early retirement for him and his young bride. Unfortunately for Moss and nearly everyone else, his stunt draws the attention and ill will of one Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem). Anton Chigurh kills people the way other people flush toilets, and about as often.

It’s up to Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) to figure out what’s going on and stop the body count. Good luck.

“No Country for Old Men” is taken from Cormac McCarthy’s book of the same title. The film stays true to the novel’s plot and especially its tone, and is a superior book-to-movie adaptation.

This is an action film in the broadest sense of the term. Its fireworks owe less to firepower than subtlety. Ringing telephones are scary in “No Country for Old Men.” Yeah, telephones. That’s top-shelf moviemaking.

“No Country” doesn’t require much suspension of disbelief. Nor does it always give viewers what they want or expect. Its characters, especially Moss, look and act pretty much how you’d expect them to given their situation. Granted, that situation involves hit men, constant dread and who’s going to wind up with $2 million in a suitcase. The movie still feels real.

Brolin aces the role of an average guy on a slippery moral slope, and Bardem is the picture of unruffled menace. Jones as Bell is the movie’s heart, though.

The sheriff knows he’s not just dealing with a few bad apples: Society in general is going to hell. The realization is as sad and unnerving in the Coens’ film as it is in McCarthy’s book.

“Once you stop hearing ‘sir’ and ‘ma’am,’ the rest is sure to follow,” Bell tells a fellow lawman.

“No Country” isn’t all grim. This is a Coen brothers picture, so it has some great lines. Here’s my favorite:

Moss’ Wife: “Where’d you get the gun?”

Moss: “The Gettin’ Place.”

It works better in the movie. See the movie.

“No Country for Old Men,” a Miramax Films and Paramount Vantage release, is rated R for strong graphic violence and some language. Running time: 122 minutes.

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