It Turns Out The Coens Do Have True Grit

I wish I could say it was different, but I've rarely 'got' the films of The Coen Brothers...at least what I've seen of their body of work so far. Only three stand out for me; the wacky, off-beat Raising Arizona, the darkly humorous Fargo and their 2007 contemporary western No Country For Old Men, being their best films so far. But established classics like The Big Lebowski and O Brother Where Art Thou?...forget it. What was all the fuss about? That's not to say I've written those movies off... Not at all, as I intend to revisit them...but at the moment, they didn't connect with my sensibilities.

That cannot be said of their adaptation of True Grit, reportedly skewing closer to Charles Portis' novel than the famous 1969 John Wayne movie of the same name. By far the most engrossing Coen Brother movie I've seen yet, stuffed with brilliant performances.
Stepping into the role which won John Wayne his only Oscar is Jeff Bridges who redefines the term 'grizzly'. Drunk, unkept, cynical and unsocial, his Rooster Cogburn is a larger than life character who eats up the screen whenever he's around...but never falls into caricature territory. Matt Damon and Josh Brolin are equally memorable; as Texas Ranger LeBoeuf, Damon channels an unearned arrogance into his buffoon of a lawman while Brolin plays down his macho side as the killer Cogburn is tracking, making murderer Tom Chaney dim-witted but mean.

Despite the talent, the movie belongs to newcomer Hailee Steinfeld as 14 year old Mattie Ross. Her older-than-her-years, grieving teenager is the glue that holds the story together and her confidence and maturity, combined with an inevitable naivety, is what makes this such a great tale. This is the western myth from a woman's perspective, as experienced by a child and recalled by a woman. It shows the journey of a girl into womanhood, and the consequences of pursuing her vengeful quest to its inevitable conclusion.

Apart from the female perspective, it's the tone The Coen's give the film that makes it unique. It has an almost poetic, lyrical quality that is partly due to the period authentic dialogue the characters wittily banter with and the haunting score derived from the traditional hymn 'Leaning On The Everlasting Arms'. It's also quite funny... the Coen's clearly enthused by the snarky exchanges of wit that are allegedly present in Portis' book.

I've not seen the John Wayne version in 30 years or more and can barely remember a thing about it, but if you haven't discovered this story yet, I'd recommend this new interpretation as a great place to start. If it's got me loving the Coen brothers work and excited about seeing Westerns again, so it's got to be pretty good.