“No Country For Old Men” stars Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Tommy Lee Jones, and co-stars Woody Harrelson. It’s Directed by Joel and Ethan Cohen, who are credited with the screenplay for this adaption of the Cormac McCarthy novel.

In Texas, a hunter named Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) stumbles upon a drug deal gone terribly wrong. Instead of reporting this to the police, like any normal person would, he decides to take the two million dollars left at the scene. This leaves him wanted by a psychopath (Javier Bardem) and by a soon-to-be retired Sheriff named Ed Tom (Tommy Lee Jones).

The words masterpiece and flawless seemed to be used to describe this movie without hesitation. This is hard to believe as I nearly fell asleep during it. What could have been a taunt and disturbing thriller ends up being sluggish and with a disappointing aftermath. The camera work was swift and the direction was solid, but was the acting really that good? Javier Bardem gives a mannequin like performance that isn’t anywhere near disturbing, repeating lines like “Call it.” among others. This is a role that anyone could’ve achieved as to the powerful performance by Hal Holbrook in the film “Into the Wild”.

One of the major problems that this film beholds is it’s absent of a mesmerizing score, or even any score for that matter. Before movies even had sound, they had music. It’s hard to appreciate a film that lacks the oldest form of entertainment. No music equals a yawn here and a sigh there. It’s probably more interesting to read then to watch. I began to lose interest in the dialog, and dialog is what the tasteless ending is composed of. Dare I say that this is a true snoozer. Why did this win best picture of the year? Why did Javier Bardem win best supporting actor, giving a lazy and emotionless performance? It just doesn’t feel right.

I know I am the minority here, but I wasn’t impressed. There are many flaws. One of the most irritating is the lack of any music that would’ve made the film at least mildly suspenseful. The acting was somewhat disappointing, spooning me the impression that anyone could’ve pulled it off the stiff performance that won Javier Bardem an academy award. Even the most famous coin-flipping scene was pointless and ineffective. It’s sad that I can’t even recommend what was crowned the best picture of 2007. 1.5/5 stars

Written by Derek Fleek
http://www.moviefilmreview.com/author/Derek Fleek