True Grit

By Will Tooke

Remakes are a tricky business.  Here in the glamorous, Soho based Film Don Inc. offices, we still argue about the relative merits of Let Me In, the American remake of the far superior Swedish Let The Right One In, that seemed to me at least to cater solely for American teenagers too lazy to read subtitles for two hours. Equally re-boots such as ‘Karate Kid’ and ‘The A-Team’ can cause a lot of heavy debate as to whether they ruined or improved the franchise.

Which brings us to the Coen Brother’s True Grit. Whilst not a remake of a foreign movie or a reboot of an 80’s classic, the comparison holds in that it is a remake of a much loved original, that garnered widespread critical acclaim upon its release in 1969, and finally won Marion Morrison (or John Wayne to you and me) a Best Actor Oscar for his swan song performance as Rooster Cogburn, the gruff, no nonsense US Marshal. The Coen’s have more than proved themselves when it comes to Westerns, having adapted and directed 2007s No Country For Old Men, but they also proved themselves to be wildly inconsistent filmmakers by following up No Country with Burn After Reading, a weird, unpleasant comedy that raises a few laughs (George Clooney’s dildo machine*, anyone?) but has dark streaks so broad that as a whole the film is uncomfortably discordant. So purists of the Western genre perhaps have a lot to be worried about. Especially since the last Coen remake was 2002’s The Ladykillers, starring Tom Hanks. There’s a reason why you probably haven’t heard of it.

Then again, the original True Grit has a lot wrong with it – and however sacrilegious this may sound; don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. The 1969 Henry Hathaway directed version screamed sixties Hollywood – if you can look past the poor quality special effects (shots of people falling off horses were sped up, a safer way for stuntmen to earn their living, but it has more than a little of the Benny Hill chase sequence about it), then its hard to look past how anaesthetised the Wild West looks. Clothes are new and clean, and saddles shine with the over care of a zealous props department. With modern additions to the genre like the much underrated, Kevin Costner directed Open Range, the TV show Deadwood, or even the sprawling epic videogame Red Dead Redemption audiences are used to seeing the Old West like it was. Violent, dark and dirty.  Pleasingly this is how the Coens have realized their version of the film. Which isn’t to say it doesn’t look beautiful, the grimy grey-brown palette periodically broken up by skylines stretching blue across the Midwestern horizons, or the spurting crimson of a fatal gunshot.

Another fault with the original was the casting. Surly Texas Ranger Labouef was played by country singer Glenn Campbell, who couldn’t act as well as he could sing, a piece of stunt casting thankfully not emulated by the Coen brothers- presumably 50 Cent was upset not to be asked to a reading, Matt Damon being a perfect fit for the role, much to Fiddy’s chagrin.  Jeff Bridges brings a gruff, whiskery authority to the one eyed Cogburn. Unlike Wayne’s incarnation, it’s easy to forget that you’re watching an actor and not a real cowboy. It’s unkind, but in truth Wayne played a gunslinger at the end of his career at the end of his career, whereas Bridges continues to go from strength to strength. He has made the role his own. John who? Wisely, Bridges channels hardly any of Wayne’s original performance, although it’s great to see the inclusion of the original’s most iconic scene – Cogburn galloping toward a posse of badguys, reins in his teeth, a six shooter in each hand, kill or be killed.

Despite Bridge’s stellar performance, the real tip of the ten gallon hat has to go to newcomer and spell check molester Hailee Steinfeld who is nothing short of astonishing in the roll of the young Maddie Ross, who hires Cogburn to track down her father’s murderer. Here – and in the original book – Maddie is only fourteen, whereas in 1969 she was played by Kim Darby, then in her early twenties, the character having been made sufficiently old enough to hint at a love interest with Cogburn, another bum note in the original. Steinfeld manages to bring the outwardly gutsy, bluntness of the character to the screen in tandem with her naivety and concealed sensitivity, a performance made all the more impressive considering she is acting alongside the likes of Damon and Bridges. That Best Supporting Actress Oscar nod is so well deserved, albeit a nomination that rather understates her role in True Grit, as she is arguably the central character – reflected in her BAFTA nomination for Best Actress. It is as much her film as it is Bridges’.

Aside from the top notch cast – bolstered by a subtle turn by Josh Brolin as the bad guy – the reason why the film really works is weirdly because it is one of the least Coen-y Coen Brother’s film. It has less of the cooky twists that seem to delight and irritate in equal measure, and is much less violent than a lot of their previous work (thus making it still pretty violent).  All in all it’s a carefully, understated film that is made all the stronger by its simple plot, letting strong character performances carry the compelling tale of revenge and justice.

*Coincidentally, a rather good name for a band.

Degree- First.

The best Western movie in years, and even ifgunslingers and horse

chases aren’t your thing– the strong performances are worth the price of admission alone.

The film to give The King’s Speech a run for its money when the

Oscars come round at the end of the month.

(If you are confused about the rating system please click on the ‘About This Blog Page’ which will explain it all)

True Grit

This film is getting a lot of Oscar and reward buzz, and for good reason. Not only does the film combine the huge talents of the Cohen brothers, Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon, but it also introduces us to Hailee Steinfeld who has got an Oscar best supporting actress nomination for her first ever acting role; that is no mean feat. Add to that the fact it is a film about redemption, battling the odds and also a re-make of the 1969 film that John Wayne his only Academy Award and this is certainly a film that people should be excited to see.