It takes true grit to attempt to remake the 1969 Oscar-winning, John Wayne classic, but the Coen brothers were up to the task and thankfully they were competent in their rendition of the Western tale. After the success of their dark, humorless drama No Country for Old Men, the Coens have returned to the scene of dark epics to test their directing skills yet again, this time adding some of that Coen humor to the mix as well.
But thinking of this movie as a remake of the first film is road to disappointment, so don't. The Coen brothers drew their creativity from Charles Portis's 1968 novel, gave a few nods John Wayne's way, and then made the movie entirely their own. The result is a wonderful experience of all the authentic period settings, speech, accents, clothing, hair, and oh, those teeth.
I won't give away any details, but the acting in this movie was absolutely superb! Jeff Bridges made no attempt to imitate or replace John Wayne as the rough, gruff, and vulgar Rooster Cogburn and in the end created an incredibly convincing character. A pleasant surprise, nearly all of the actors and actresses in the film put out some of their best performances to date, even if only with small roles, including Matt Damon as the inept Texas Ranger, Barry Pepper as Lucky Ned Pepper, and Josh Brolin as the hopeless coward Tom Chaney. On top of it all, Hailee Steinfeld made a fantastic Mattie Ross, playing the naively headstrong girl that avenges her father's death by pursuing his murderer with U.S. Marshall Cogburn.
The Coens' True Grit is a impressive visit to the classic Old West that neither diminishes nor tries to compete with the 1969 film. Definitely a classic to add to the Coen collection! 8/10
But thinking of this movie as a remake of the first film is road to disappointment, so don't. The Coen brothers drew their creativity from Charles Portis's 1968 novel, gave a few nods John Wayne's way, and then made the movie entirely their own. The result is a wonderful experience of all the authentic period settings, speech, accents, clothing, hair, and oh, those teeth.
I won't give away any details, but the acting in this movie was absolutely superb! Jeff Bridges made no attempt to imitate or replace John Wayne as the rough, gruff, and vulgar Rooster Cogburn and in the end created an incredibly convincing character. A pleasant surprise, nearly all of the actors and actresses in the film put out some of their best performances to date, even if only with small roles, including Matt Damon as the inept Texas Ranger, Barry Pepper as Lucky Ned Pepper, and Josh Brolin as the hopeless coward Tom Chaney. On top of it all, Hailee Steinfeld made a fantastic Mattie Ross, playing the naively headstrong girl that avenges her father's death by pursuing his murderer with U.S. Marshall Cogburn.
The Coens' True Grit is a impressive visit to the classic Old West that neither diminishes nor tries to compete with the 1969 film. Definitely a classic to add to the Coen collection! 8/10