Mark Kermode Reviews No Country for Old Men - BBC 5 Live

[FearOfTheFlesh]

The movie was okay. Though there is a lot of meaning in many of conversations such as the one in regards to the afterlife at the end, the biggest drawback was the lack of a captivating storyline, and character attachment.

It doesn't have the storyline development or attachment to characters that you get from dramas like the Shawshank Redemption, plot twists like you get in the 6th sense or the Usual Suspects, or the excitement of an action movie like the Dark Knight. So to me it was okay.

[LicoriceLain]

The ending is perfect.

[Bassbait]

I think that there have been more difficult endings to sit through. Eraserhead comes to mind, although in that world, you toss out the need for resolution about 10 minutes in when you realize this film isn't going to have a plot.

Full Metal Jacket had a very unresolved ending that is very uncomfortable too. I think Coens took the "almost funny, almost depressing, almost horrific" thing from Kubrick. Look at Dr. Strangelove! It's a pretty depressing film.

[Kyusoath]

i didn't really like this movie, however i recognise that it is a work of great quality.

and respect the makers. a good movie but not really for me. shame most movies these days are fucking garbage.

[berlinbrown03]

The villain is scary awesome.

[wwwdihstyledotcom]

The ending is excellent, I don't get why people are so sad about it -.-

[teroian]

while memento starts with the ending then ends with the beginning,no country for old men starts with the climax(killing scenes) then flactuates.the point of the ending:

1.brolin chooses greed(money) over love(wife)

2.the killers determines fate w/ a toss coin,his car accident was undetermined

3.tommy wakes up from a dream to a sad empty reality.

this movie is a "better than sex",it's original and unpredictable that it will have people talking about it which you reviewers just did...

[ASDMarauder007]

i've watched this movie 5 times. I know the ending each time i watch it. However i still want to watch it, that's what's so great about this film, it keeps you gripped to the screen.

Then my dad saw the first scene and joined me while i was watching it for the 4h time, he got the ending and asked i asked him what's it all about? he says "every person will have a different opinion, mine is all people commit good and evil and the sheriff is basically trying to explain it to his wife"

[Hyman74Roth]

Even though I understand the ending, I'm still mixed. I guess if I look at Anton as just a brute force like the recent Tsanumi in Japan than yes I can totally buy the ending and see why it won best picture that year. I think it is more of a sad commentary of the crime in America and how it has become more brutal. Its something that Christopher Nolan would expand upon more in The Dark Knight, but with that one there is someone to counteract the brutal crimes in that film.

[sccrgeek]

soo ive read a few reviews, explanations etc... WHY THE HELL DO PEOPLE THINK THIS MOVIE IS SPECIAL??

[DulBeat]

An interesting take on the ending, I think is the "It's all a dream" approach. Listen to Tommy Lee Jones's first dream, it relates eerily to both Moss's death and Chugur (however you spell it) waiting for him at the end of it all.

[ehmazin]

Roger Deacons is the best cinematographer in cinema for me

[metfilmguy2009]

For me personaly I feel the Coen Brothers (or the original books author depending which ever it is) wanted people to think that the ending was going to be a somewhat traditional ending (judging by the first two thirds of the film), but instead decided to go completly left field and throw everyone off. Now fair enough it's a different ending, and I can understand why some people would prefer this ending, but for me I would have prefered a more traditional or (as near traditional) ending instead.

[Mantiso]

@metfilmguy2009 the final act is what sets it apart from other movies. without it, it wouldn't be much more than a chase movie, and while it would still be very good, it would hardly warrant Best Pic. and the ending wasn't thrown in from left field. if you really followed the movie, you'd realise it has EVERYTHING to do with the story and Tommy Lee Jones' character. it turns a great chase movie into a statement on our continually changing society, and a persons purpose in the world

[ASAMOAH24]

One of the best endings ever

[Sarusource]

I have been looking for a few hours (a little sad) and I can't find a review by Kermode of McCarthy's The Road. Did he ever do one?

[rorrt]

@Sarusource

On their podcast they did an interview with the director John Hillcoat, which sort of acted like a review on their radio show.

If you really, really want PM me your email and i can send you the podcast,

It was on the 08/01/2010 episode, incase you can find a bit-torrent, theres the episode date.

[BootyBot]

why the fuck do these reviewers pick apart everything? Who gives a shit what you think just keep your mouth shut and say if you enjoyed it or if you didn't I don't care what you have to say. You're not a movie so you don't entertain me just say if you like it or not you egotistical self centered assholes. you always have to make the movie about you.

If you want me to listen to what you have to say about a movie go make one that doesn't completely suck dick.

[SleepPersonParty]

@BootyBot You're an idiot.

[BootyBot]

@SleepPersonParty much better thanks for not nittpicking and critiquing the metaphorical meaning of my comment. we need more people like you in the world

[SleepPersonParty]

@BootyBot I was privy to your convoluted message the whole time. I swears it.

[QuatermassMan]

The Coens should direct a horror film! Blood Simple almost was a horror film, they should just go ahead and make a flat out horror film. It'd be awesome!

[macca3871]

The end is more about the man, I reckon. He's spent his life trying to make the world right and he realises that he's powerless to do that job. He wants to be that man (his father) making the world safe for others (making the fire, making things right, comforting and warm). But at the end of the dream, he wakes up. Because he can't. And that explains the title.

[dcasey77]

What is the tiny mistake that Kermode refers to? Is it Moss going back to give water to the dying man?

If so, that has no bearing on the rest of the story. The bag of money contains a transponder so people would have tracked him down anyway regardless of whether he returned to the site where he found the money.

Or is he referring to something else that I've forgotten about?

[chuprichachi1]

You have to hold your breath from the beginning to end. I have seen this movie many times since its release but every time I see it I don't know why, but I just hope something different would happen (may be, a happy ending). An absolutely fanastic movie with great acting and dialogues. And I think its sad ending makes a great movie even greater.

[TheHappydead]

excellant film, great non existant death scene, i enjoyed the ending im sure it'll infuriate some but thats tough luck for presuming this movie is something it isnt, tommy lee jones is magnificent............. the coen brothers do it again

[Kitsua]

The Coen Brothers are the greatest living filmmakers, in my humble opinion. 

[mesmiths]

He's the best reviewer methinks



[magnolia972]

the MOVIE (not the book) should have ended with the dead of moss. everything from this point on was to much for my taste, but this is only my opinion.

what's good on the film?

javier bardem! i really think he's a psychotic killer. this man has a lot of faces (ok! in this movie he uses only one...but i know he is very versatile)

i found him very impressive as chigurh - a man with principles!

[ryanstiles]

Well said Mark... No COuntry for Old Men was a spectular example of moviemaking.

[skinwalkerxxx]

this movie was well made but pointless really

[grandtheftgordon]

@skinwalkerxxx WHAT THE FUCK DOES THAT MEAN? Seriously what do you mean by 'pointless'?

[skinwalkerxxx]

There wasn't a story there that was crying to be made in my opinion. The athmosphere of the film was nice, some of the acting was good but at the end of the day, I felt like I wasted my time.

[ShaneBeacham]

@skinwalkerxxx I have to say I agree with you there.

[Ribofl4vin]

@skinwalkerxxx It's a sad day when people start to think that the macguffin is what's important. This movie is the opposite of pointless. It provides far more food for thought than most of the films I have seen since. If you're wondering why *SPOILER* we don't know for sure where the money ends up, why the main character dies well before the ending, and what the meaning of the ending is, then good. Watch it again with those questions in mind. You'll get more out of it.

[skinwalkerxxx]

@Ribofl4vin I understood every bit of the flick. There was no question marks to me, I wasn't even bothered by the ending like some. It's just that there was nothing that impressed me. The Cohens succeed at film noir and I guess they think whatever they're gonna do with that will shine and I think it's not always the case. This was lazy filmaking with a flat story. They should watch a few 1970s noir movies like this and see how more real they were and interesting.

[skinwalkerxxx]

@skinwalkerxxx Followng...also this movie made me realise that the Cohen are a bit of shallow filmakers. Visualists first and foremost and tend to use gimmicks. The magority of their films are rather not very organic and real. Cartoonish most of the time. Of course easily watchable and rewatchable but not great. Don't get me wrong I have the DVDs and they produce enjoyable entertainement. But when they try to get serious like with NCFOM, it fails spectacularly, imo. Barden's character was a joke

[GerbilEssences]

@skinwalkerxxx It was all a bit uninvolving. As for the end, we are to assume Bardem killed the wife? That would be a little bit mean :(

[Armysmithaz]

gangsta movie. diss on this motherfucker

[rorrt]

why do you need to see it?

The audience is not stupid, they can figure out Tommy Lee Jones driving, mexicans driving away with the screeching of tyres.

Moss in a pool of blood.

Thats like saying why didnt you see the drugs deal going sour in the first quarter of the film; dead mexicans, cocaine in pickup truck, and money on the hill.

and in true Coen bros. style the film is not about the odvious plot (LLewyn moss), its about Anton Sugar.

[CyberDeadly]

@rorrt Well, its a matter of taste of course. The bit at the start had a point in making the audience intrigued and start figuring things out for themselves. The bit I was talking about - if done on screen it could have been a high point. Been more surprising. And more dramatic if it was on-screen. I think theres good reason why you never see it done in films, is what I'm trying to say.

[rorrt]

i see what you mean.

though the film was never really about Llewyn Moss, it was about Anton Sugar.

because in my opinion Tommy Lee Jones had a larger role to play in the film.

[Transformers217]

If it was on screen, then it wouldn't of had any type of drama, and would of been too conventional for what the Coen brothers were aiming towards.

[Transformers217]

That's not the fault of the film at all.

[Neonman78]

1:05, I'm 18 and I feel that way now :(

[madammao]

why does he return to the crime scene? The novel and film don't give a plausible explanation. I think thats the big flaw in this great storyline

[eyeqew]

Brings the dying guy water.

[415jdookie]

I didn't get it at first either. He wanted to go back and make sure the guy askin for water was dead. He knew if someone came lookin for the money and that guy was still alive that he would say oh yea some white guy with a mustache and a cowboy hat took the suitcase. He wanted to cover his tracks. At first he figured the guy would die anyway, but he wasn't sure.

[Apathesis0]

I'm convinced every movie made by the Coen Brothers is a just a joke. A big fuck you to everyone with any sort of expectations. Burn After Reading was complete garbage, and the only good part of it was John Malkovich, and he was not in the movie enough.

[keflar5]

new form of evil?? all i see is the same rich cunts killing everyone, the first 30 mins are great and there isn't a word spoke in it

[jazzgent]

Geez. how can you not mention Javier Bardem in that review. Not good.

[gdounreay]

very good point. I think he's probably up there with the scariest baddies in film history. On a par with Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast

[TobeUK]

So many people still don't get the ending- to be fair, i didn't until a second viewing- it's pretty much perfect....not enough space in this comment box to analyse for you as if im writing for Sight and Sound, but .... it's just 'right'.

[nevinrobinson]

The ending may make perfect sense, but that does not necessarily mean it's entertaining.

[Regenmacher175]

Today there is too much entertainment and not enough investment (emotionally). Movies should express the director's views regarding a certain subject matter and not just aim at entertaining the audience. that's how uncomfortable truths are always hidden.

[jhvscs]

hear hear

[bbqplatypus318]

The people who disliked the ending aren't stupid - they just mistook the movie for something it wasn't.

"No Country" is not a traditional "chase" movie. It's not about the money, or who gets who in the end. It's a meditation about chance and fate. Within this framework, the ending makes perfect sense.

But if you STILL want to blame someone for the ending, blame Cormac McCarthy. This is one of the most faithful adaptations of a book in history, and one of the best movies in recent memory.

[TheSilhouette]

We weren't just mistaken, we were actively mislead. The whole film up until that point had all the characteristics of really good thriller.

Then, out of the blue, the film goes "oh, you thought this film was really exciting and entertaining, did you? Well, fuck you. We're going to kill off all the characters you have spent 3/4s of the film identifying with because while you may like entertaining films, we are trying to be all arty and serious and don't give a damn what you think. Ha ha!"

[bbqplatypus318]

I know.

I call it "The Jarhead Effect" - a movie gets you to expect an action movie or thriller and then not only defies these expectations, it fucks them right up the ass. You'll either think it's brilliant or complete shit.

[415jdookie]

I think Jarhead was a little. It's borderline false advertisement. lol. This ending was just a little off. I like movies like that though . Happy endings are just corny.

[opmike343]

@bbqplatypus318

VERY well stated.

[meepmeepmeepjeep]

@bbqplatypus318 Although it has been a while since i watched the movie. reading between the lines he does kill the girl at the endas when he walks out of the house he checks his shoes (I think). Throughout the whole film everytime he murders he always makes sure he has no blood on his feet (i think he takes his shoes off to kill at one point)

[aikighost]

......While shouting "Ha Ha fuck you consumer, fuck you. You want closure? You want an ending that is in some way satisfying to the viewer? You want to at least have a final denouement between one of the protagonists and the psycho? Fuck you moron eat our filth!!"

That's how I felt anyway. A film that could have been great totally destroyed by the most horrendous "bait and switch" I've ever had the misfortune to see.

In a word "Disgusting"

[ColonalJessup]

Who gives a shit that you don't like it ? It won best picture and several other Oscars, it's widely regarded as a great film.

[aikighost]

There are a ton of people out there who hate the ending and agree wit my position on it. All I'm doing is expressing my opinion that still allowed isn't it?

Most of the people I know personally who have seen it and arent raging choens fanboys hated the ending.

[ColonalJessup]

Not liking the ending doesn't chnage the fact that it's a great film.

[aikighost]

Id say it changes what should be an amazing film into an annoying one. But there you go. Horses for courses and all that.

Luck,

[hippotoast]

Whats wrong with the ending? Have you read the book?

[in2universe]

I think the coen brothers wanted the audience to feel like the good guys can hardly win because like he said the world is morally doomed. So they had to kill the good guy.

[Transformers217]

Even though he wasn't really a good guy at all. The only "good guy" was Tommy Lee Jones character.

[aikighost]

I mostly agree with Kermode but here is my feeling on No Country for old men:

Good performances, interesting enough characters with a nice tone of its own. I was really enjoying it, feeling the tension build and build and then whoosh the cohens whip the rug out from under you and as you sit there lying on your back going "Hey what the hell happened?" the two brothers pull down their pants and take a nice big steaming dump on your face. ..... contd

[ghostmanlostsoul]

Mark you hit it on the mark.

I love your reviews.

[cognitivemagic]

The ending of the movie was a hard pill for people to swallow because it doesn't accommodate audiences who prefer loose ends to be tied and/or who prefer happy endings.

The ending of the film has more in common with ancient Greek tragedies and Shakespearean dramas than with popular cinema. That is why movie-goers had such a hard time with it.

However, the Oscar Award for "Best Picture" was more than justified....the Coen Brothers can do no wrong!!!

[jclwhite]

I didn't like the ending the first time i saw it, but second time I loved it. Sherrif Bell feels forlorn and at a loss as to how to fight such monsterous killers. A kind of melancholic resignation to the destruction he has witnessed.

[aikighost]

I wasn't after a happy ending, just an ending. The pacing and tone totally changed in the last 10 minutes. The central character is killed off screen to zero dramtic effect, all the tension that the entire film was building up was let bleed away off screen.

The conclusion was utterly unsatisfying on every level both visceral, emotional and on a basic story telling level.

Epic fail.

[cognitivemagic]

"No Country.." ended, intentionally, on a nihilistic note. It wasn't suppose to "end", in the traditional sense. And it wasn't suppose to make sense.

The entire movie is a sustained meditation on the "meaninglessness" and despair of modern times.

The movie is kinda like sitting in a school classroom when, out of the blue, a classmate walks in and shoots you in the head....along with 15-20 other people at school.

There is no concluding "hooray, I've lived a long life".

It's over instantly

[aikighost]

Well if it wasn't supposed to make sense they achieved that goal admirably.

Basically the ending was a big fuck you to the people who have supported the Coen brothers in their previous work. I'll really have to think very hard before seeing another of their films.

Whatever their goals with this film all they achieved for many people is to piss them off and make a mental note to "avoid those Coens movies like the plague in the future"

[cognitivemagic]

As you say "the conclusion was utterly unsatisfying on every level" and "epic fail".

Yes....that's exactly the point!!!

The film is a mirror of modern life and society. Many people don't get satisfying conclusions in their death.....don't get to do or say the things they wanted to when they are instantly hit by a drunk driver. Or suddenly and mysteriously dying of complications arising from an influenza infection. Or being one of the hapless victims of the BTK, or Zodiac, serial killer.

[IronManOfficialguy]

agreed.

[FriedEggsandChips]

@cognitivemagic Yes! Thank you, you've completely summed up how I felt about this film.

[science454]

the first 90 minutes were excellent, then the plot fell flat. It's a shame, because otherwise, this was a deserved oscar contender.

Top class acting though.

[garpsgirl7]

Dear DrCruel,what the hell are you jibbing on about? Who is your least favourite American film critic and tell me what you think of Barry Norman smart guy.

[ajjaxd]

I was wondering the same thing

[garpsgirl7]

You are right.DrCruel ain't English.If he was he would appreciate proper English Cinema

[DrCruel]

If this man was issued a PhD, the school he got it from should lose its accreditation. He really is a complete fool. None of his sophmoric comments have ever made me think of him as either witty, urbane or humorous.

He seems more intent on deliberately being a contrary jerk. Mind, it obviously has worked out for him - perhaps there is a market for contrary jerks in the film industry - and I suppose this job keeps him off the streets. But what he knows about movies could fit in a thimble.

[jimmyhvac]

typical. LOOK AT THIS BLOKES PAGE, HE HAS BRIDGE AT REMEGAN ON THERE. YOUR FAVOURITE FILM? GOOD BASE FOR KNOWLEDGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[liambussell]

Alfrunk, what is your PhD in? As for Mr/Dr Kermode, while my opinion often differs with his (He likes pointless horror, I prefer pointless violence and anything with werewolves) He is witty, urbane and humorous. He also understands sarcasm, which makes it difficult for North Americans to understand. I think his PhD in film studies probably helps him be a film critic. And I see you, here, on youtube commenting on him negatively. I don't see Kermode posting negative comments on your Facebook page.

[garpsgirl7]

The tempo of NCFOM is near perfect and while it may seem to be Coen by numbers the film is astonishly deep

[murphicus]

I agree. The past that stuck with me was the two boys taking the money from him with his blood on it, & arguing how they would split it. The kid offered him the shirt off his back for free to help his injury, but took the money to keep quiet.

For me, that was the theme of the 1980's

In simpler times, kids did not need $

The part that in hindsight did not make sense was the water. When he went back with the jug, he jumped into a river that was right by the dying man who was pleading for water.

[garpsgirl7]

I need to read the book! Maybe water scene was plot development? It did lead to the hilarious/terrifying dog chase.

[garpsgirl7]

Yes,it says that everything has a price,even youth these days.The killer seems to be working on a higher plane where morality doesn't count.

[garpsgirl7]

I thought There Will Be Blood was nailed on to win Best Picture...but then came the ending...

[DrCruel]

It was a fairly good movie, although I agree it was overrated.

As for Kermode, you have to understand that he's sort of the Howard Cosell of movie critics - someone who is absolutely convinced of his own genius, completely elitist, and utterly out of touch with what makes a movie good. Most of his reviews are quite ridiculous, and worthy of listening to only to pick up on the really funny boners. He tends to go completely off the rails from time to time, and can be hilarious when he does.

[Alfrunk]

It astonishes me that his fans call him "Dr" Kermode... a Phd in film studies? Seriously, what on Earth kind of Phd program is that? Utter nonsense.

[kristiantheheathen]

I didn't dislike this film, but I think it was overrated. I thought "There will be blood" was a much better film and why this one got all the Oscars in stead, I just don't understand.

[MMtheLion]

While I was waiting for the movie to continue further, it ended all of a sudden! So I had to rewind and check again how it really ended. I think it was more of an Oscar type movie which means not my type! :(

[lavverlylad]

The Coens did the movie equivalent of Aphex Twin when he played a disc of sandpaper to a hip New York nightclub. They are taking the piss. If this was a TV movie, you wouldn't have a mountain of film "cognoscenti" rolling over each other, masturbating, desperately trying to praise it.

[SuperBob909]

Wrong name for the movie it should of been called Terminator 4.

[Scrabble31]

should HAVE

[TemplarReturns]

Nobody fucked with Chigurh in this film! Hes the ultimate badass.

[IcrushwitheyelinerI]

Totaly agree. Its one of the best films ive seen in a while! =)