by Sun Meilan

Created on: March 27, 2009   Last Updated: October 09, 2010

When Llewelyn Moss comes across a drug deal gone wrong, his first reaction isn't to help the one man he finds still alive, but to make off with the huge pile of cash he finds in a briefcase. It soon becomes clear, however, that the person who owns the money wants it back; not only that, but he is prepared to gun Llewelyn down as soon as look at him. The man in question is called Anton Chigurh, and he is prepared to chase Llewelyn to the ends of the earth in order to get his money back. Llewelyn flees, after ensuring that his wife is somewhere safe. In the meantime, Sheriff Ed Tom Bell is in charge of the investigation into Chigurh's many crimes. Will he manage to get to Chigurh before Chigurh gets to Llewelyn? Will Llewelyn be able to escape with both the money and his life?

I'm always dubious about watching films that have been hyped up to the hilt like this one. More often than not, I'm disappointed because they don't live up to expectations. Finally, however, I succumbed to the draw of No Country for Old Men, simply because it sounds like exactly the sort of film I would enjoy. The fact that it is directed and written by the Coen brothers is neither here nor there for me - I have loved some of their films, particularly Fargo and The Big Lebowski, but hated others, such as Intolerable Cruelty and O Brother, Where Art Thou? Then again, knowing that the story is based on a book by Cormac McCarthy did give me more than a glimmer of hope.

I've heard so many great things about Javier Bardem's performance as Anton Chigurh in this film. I have seen Bardem act before, although only in Spanish language films (including the brilliant Jamon Jamon), so was initially taken aback by how well he speaks English. He does have a slight accent, but it is otherwise excellent. Hopefully that means he will appear in more English language films in the future - I'm certainly looking forward to seeing him in the already released Love in the Time of Cholera as soon as I can get my hands on it. Simply put, this is a really stunning performance. Chigurh is a complete psychopath who thinks nothing of killing anyone who gets in his way. Bardem makes this utterly convincing, with a face that can occasionally charm, but usually strikes the fear of God into anyone who comes across him, including the audience (well, me, anyway). And this is all despite his silly haircut, which is a bob of the type I had in the nineties. I will watch this film again for Bardem's performance alone.

I thought

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