No Country For Old Men

I went to see the newest Coen Brothers movie last night and it is truly a return to form for them. Tommy Lee Jones' and Javier Bardem's performances are Oscar worthy. Jones is an aging and increasingly world weary Texas sheriff and Bardem a menacing sociopath who kills his victims with a captive bolt pistol, a tool used to kill livestock. I cannot remember the last time an actor's performance filled me with as much dread as Bardem's does in this movie. Even when he wasn't on the screen, when his presence was merely implicit, I was on the edge of my seat, waiting for him to strike. His character, Anton Chigurh is one of the great movie villains. Josh Brolin is also good as Llewelyn Moss, Chigurh's prey. Roger Deakins' cinematography is as stunning as usual and Carter Burwell's score is perfectly understated. After the near-miss of Intolerable Cruelty and the unnecessary remake of The Ladykillers, it's good to see the Coens back to their quirky, superbly original style of filmmaking and storytelling.