And not before time. I've no idea why it's taken me so long to see this- I like the Coen brothers and modern takes on the western- but it was only last weekend I finally sat down and watched it. Well worth the wait it was too with the biting black humour you come to expect from the Coens, wonderfully shot and a few frights thrown in. It's surprising that it has garnered so few awards over the past few months, especially from the excellent performances from the cast. Much has been said of Hailee Steinfeld's performance as Mattie Ross and she deserves the plaudits. She sells every last syllable of what is at times pretty fast, complicated dialogue and is utterly convincing- tough and determined with just the right level of vulnerability. As everyone else has said, Jeff Bridges is equally as impressive as Cogburn, the fact that you can only pick up every other world only adds to the authenticity of the character. Matt Damon also deserves a mention as it's only through his interaction with them that the relationship between Mattie and Cogburn really works.
My friends and I were discussing the ending over a couple of drinks in the pub afterwards (Cloisters if you're wondering- if you don't know it then really should go some time and give me a shout). One of them was wondering whether the epilogue was really necessary and I am certainly often critical of films that feel like they go on five or ten minutes too long (or in the case of the Stieg Larsson trilogy about 4 1/2 hours). However, in this instance the epilogue really added something to our understanding of the film [SPOILER ALERT]; not only about how Hattie was shaped, physically and mentally, by the experience but also how Cogburn was. He leaves the old ways behind, we don't know for certain why- maybe he feels too old, perhaps he came too close to death, for the first time maybe he felt a productive purpose in his life rather than a destructive one (when he replaces his horse I was reminded of Major's speech in Animal Farm "Man is the only creature that consumes without producing...he is too weak to pull the ploough, he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits.") Or perhaps times just change- the film ends not just with his death but that of the Wild West itself.
Anyway, well up there with the best of the Coen brothers and, for me, much more rewarding that the distinctly ok King's Speech.
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