True Grit Review

First off, sorry; I actually got to see True Grit at an advance screening last Monday, and would have loved to of had an early review for you all, but my schedule has been really busy. But, to my luck and surprise, on my first day of vacation yesterday, TCM was airing the original 1969 version of True Grit with John Wayne's Oscar winning performance, and I really wanted to see it before I made my final judgment on the Coen Brothers' take on the western novel.

Basically, my main impressions are going to be based off seeing the film cold, without any real knowledge of the original adaptation and without seeing anything but the first trailer (something I wish I did for Tron: Legacy, but that's my next review). I'll make some judgments based on my newfound knowledge but, nothing major. Having said all that, I'm a huge fan of the Coen's films, with my favorite being last years seemingly under the radar, A Serious Man (which I surely would have given a Seal of Approval had I seen it in theaters), and with only 3 of their films still unseen I think I have a pretty good judgment as to what works and what doesn't when it comes to their work.

True Grit works, and its damn good. I'd really love to just leave the review at that but I can't. I, like many others semi-doubted that not only could the Coens not pull off a remake (or new adaptation, your pick) but could they pull off a western? Granted there aren't really any westerns anymore, and if there are they're not original; 3:10 to Yuma, anyone? But if someone was going to do it right, the Coens were the right choice.

While some of the advertising may suggest that Josh Brolin is a major part of the film, or that the story is all about Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon, you'd be wrong. The real star is first time actress Hailee Steinfeld, who not only narrates the film but is practically in every scene of the film and its about her life... so as to why people are award her as 'supporting actress' is incredibly baffling to me. But any recognition is good recognition because for a first timer she really carries this film all her own and does a really great job.

As for the rest of the cast, both Matt Damon and Jeff Bridges are great. Bridges (unlike his reprise of Kevin Flynn in Tron: Legacy) does not play "The Dude" here, and his character is very unlike the gritty but heroic character that John Wayne played in the original. He's ruffer, he's grosser, but he's still great to watch. As for Matt Damon, I doubted he could pull of a southern accent and a mustache, but he proved me wrong. And Josh Brolin, he's good, but he just deserve to have his name on all the posters and ads, he's barely in the film and doesn't even say much, DON'T BE MISLEAD. But really all the acting is superb regardless of misleading ads.

But how does it compare to the Coens other films? Well, I'm generally not really into westerns (Clint Eastwood aside) so I can say that this is one of the few I actually enjoyed (and having seen the original now I much enjoyed that as well). But my favorites of theirs are A Serious Man, No Country for Old Men, O, Brother Where Art Thou?, Fargo and The Big Lebowski, amongst others of course, but I'd say True Grit is definitely up there now.

The film just came out yesterday, with the holiday weekend coming up; and I know this review is incredibly informal when compared to my past work, but do yourself a favor, if you see anything before the year ends: SEE THIS MOVIE.

Overall Score: 9.5/10

After Thoughts: Josh Brolin Q&A

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Back on topic, much like the Q&A session with James Franco last year, I was able to attend another Q&A session with Josh Brolin today at the School of Visual Arts, located here in New York City. But, unlike that session, this was a much different beast. Perhaps it was the time of day (12 in the afternoon on a Tuesday as opposed to late on any other day), or the fact that most teenage girls don't scream at the sight of Josh Brolin, whatever the reason may be, this session was not jam packed like the previous session, which meant I was able to get a nice, close seat, and even sneak in a cellphone camera shot despite being told no photography:

What was discussed? Well, after a short vignette of clips from No Country for Old Men, Milk, and American Gangster, Mr. Brolin came out, was introduced, and after a remark regarding The Goonies (Brolin's first acting role) he quickly replied with, "That's not what we're going to be talking about today," which I found pretty amusing.

However, the the Q&A session mainly discussed Brolin's role in the Coen brothers' Academy Award winning film, No Country for Old Men (which is one of my personal favorites when it comes to Coen films), his portrayal as former President, George W. Bush, in Oliver Stones' W., the already filmed, but not released Woody Allen film, You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger, and the currently filming Oliver Stone picture (his first sequel, mind you), Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps, which is a follow-up to the 1987 Academy Award winning film, Wall Street. There was mentions of his others acting work, and some direct he's been trying to do, but his upcoming role in Jonah Hex wasn't talked about as much as I would have liked.

But what was really interesting to hear out of all of this was how he went from The Goonies to be a part of all of these great films with directors that have some really extensive and prestigious reputations. It was cool to get an insight on how a lot of these big name directors and actors work whether it be on the rehearsal, filming, or post-production level. So until the likes of Woody Allen, Oliver Stone, and Joel and Ethan Coen are actually in the same room with me (and I doubt that will happen any time soon) this was about the closest I'll get and it was neat to hear from an actor I more or less respect. Definitely a much better experience than the James Franco session.

Note: Sorry this isn't as extensive as it could be, the session took place from 12 to 1:30 today, and then I had a busy day all after that. So, I don't really remember all of the specific questions that took place and what not. But I think what I've written above sums up the experience pretty well.

SDCC 09: Jonah Hex poster

The Dark Knight may have been DC Comics' big film focus of 2008, and the success of that film arguably is what brought a lot of hype to Watchmen this year. So what's next for DC Comics' theatrical films? Other than the currently in pre-production Green Lantern, there's been one movie filming that you may not have heard about: Jonah Hex.

Let's ignore Megan Fox's rediculously tight corset for a moment and take a look the starring character, Jonah Hex, played by Josh Brolin. Being familiar with the character, I think it's nice to see his trademark facial scars are still in-tact, including that gross piece of flesh that comes in front of his mouth... Otherwise, this poster doesn't really tell me much, as it clearly looks like Warner Bros. placed Megan Fox there to catch people's attention.

Sadly, at least from the poster, I'm getting the same bad vibe I did from Marvel's Ghost Rider film. In that they're taking a reasonably obscure character from the comic universe, but instead of developing the lead character, they put the focus on an attractive woman that otherwise is unneeded in the film; and thus the film is a poor adaptation because you lose what make's the comic so unique. But it's just a poster, and I'm sure there will be more to judge sooner or later. Let's hope this isn't another Catwoman... I know Marvel has a lot of films on the way DC, but seriously, quantity isn't quality.