Following the murder of her father by a hired hand, a 14-year-old farm girl sets out to capture the killer. To aid her, she hires the toughest U.S. Marshal she can find—a man with 'true grit'—Reuben J. 'Rooster' Cogburn.
23 Feb True Grit (2010)
Pumice
The Coens are important to me because they invented an approach to film that has had effect in the world of film, dreams and my life. What they are able to do is take us to the edge of a genre, showing us the limits and the outside while at the same time exploiting the mechanics of what we know is simple machinery. It is not the sort of self-aware or ironic stance that lessor filmmakers use. It is the balance that appeals because it gives us the visceral pleasures we seek with the satisfaction of knowing what is happening.
What they accomplished with Bridges in Lebowski may not fully be appreciated in the future, because the conceptual hooks they hang from change over time. The film will likely be remembered as a string of quotes and be clumped with ‘Ted’s Excellent Adventure.‘ But it changed things in an essential way.
They like challenges, these brothers, and are not afraid of failing. But failed they have here. The problem has nothing to do with their skills; it comes instead from the fact that the western genre has ceased to be a genre. There are no edges to take us to, no novelty in proving to us that they can stretch and exploit because the western is where it was done first.
Here is an example. In a powerful Coen film, the ‘crossing‘ scene would work. Our spunky girl has decided to risk her life swimming a river with her newly acquired horse rather than be left out of the story. Deakins dives fully into the genre. Burwell‘s score is pure; both call up John Ford. This is as deep as it is possible to go. Meanwhile, our two men who will compete as observers are together for the first time watching. This is typical Coen and it always works, but not here.
Even Kevin Costner did this. It is hard to convey energy when you know someone like Costner can get the same from the convenience store shelf.
Bridges isn’t up to this. I don’t know who could be, but he fails. You are constantly aware that he is trying to walk and speak outside his range because that is what he has been told to do. He actually pulled off a similar challenge: loser country singer in a genre similarly at risk, but country singing has denial of reality built in, whereas the Coens depend on recall of its coldness.
Posted in 2011
Ted’s Evaluation — 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.
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