Saturday, July 7, 2012

True Grit (2010)

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Hailee Stenfeld
Directed by: Joel & Ethan Coen
Rating: I Really Liked It

I put off watching this movie for a long time.  I just didn't think it would be something I'd really enjoy.  Most of the Coen's movies are OK, but I've never seen one I really, really enjoyed.  I'm not the huge fan of The Big Lebowski or O Brother, Where Art Though? so many people are.  I thought No Country for Old Men was enjoyable, but my favorite of theirs is probably Burn After Reading, which a lot of people didn't even watch.

The second reason I didn't hold high hopes for this movie was because it's a western.  I'm not a big western fan by any means, save Tombstone and Dances With Wolves, which isn't the standard western anyway...oh, and Maverick, which is more of a comedy than a western.  I've seen a couple of other westerns that were OK, but again, nothing that I'd call one of my favorite movies.  I like the concept of a western, though.

The Good:

  • Bridges and Damon were great as they usually are.  Damon's character was awesome as the Texas Ranger who thinks everything from Texas is better.  
  • This wasn't Stenfeld's first film, but it was, in my opinion, her first major role, and I think she did an awesome job, too.  
  • The story over all was good, and I loved seeing Cogburn turn from the rough US Marshall into the caring old man.  
  • The final scenes were very poignant.  
  • The lightly sprinkled comedy throughout the movie was excellent.  
The Bad: 
  • Josh Brolin's character, Tom Chaney, the murderer of Mattie Ross's (Steinfeld) father, was a little whiny for me, especially considering the way he had been talked up as an outlaw all through the movie.  
The Ugly: 
  • The Coen's put together a good movie here, with nothing really ugly to report.  

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