True Grit (2010)
The jury is still out on this one. I'm not a big fan of Westerns, and this was a Western in true form, but it had some weird parts. At some points, I wasn't sure if they were making fun of Westerns or what exactly was going on.
Mattie Ross was a very interesting character. I liked how she believed the law was always in the right. To get her way in many instances, she would threaten men with her lawyer. It worked for those who obeyed the law, but it didn't work on the criminals. It drew a nice picture of how idealistic she was. Her goal was to find the man who shot her father and bring him to justice. She even goes on the journey to make sure he gets brought back alive so he can hang.
However, things don't turn out the way she planned, and her ideals are tested. As is expected, she changes on her journey. I don't want to ruin the film for those of you who are planning on seeing it, so that's all I'm going to say about that.
The other characters in this film were very bizarre. Rooster Cogburn was your typical cowboy, with blurred lines between right/wrong and good/bad. Jeff Bridges did a great job. LaBoeuf was a really strange character. I think he was supposed to be the comic relief, and he was, but he was also a little creepy. The second time you meet him, he's sitting in Mattie's room, watching her sleep. She's 14. He makes a comment about how he was contemplating kissing her, but after her sharp tongue, he might just take her over his knee and spank her (which he does later in the film, and the whole scene is really uncomfortable). *Shudder*
The bad guys were strange, too, but I really liked them. I especially like Tom Chaney because he was played by Josh Brolin. Even as an idiot and cold-blooded killer, that man is still attractive. It was interesting how he was characterized. Again, I don't want to ruin the film, so I won't say anymore.
The reason I don't like Westerns is because I think they are slow. I like action and lots of shooting. This film had a lot of slow moments. I understand the need to show them riding their horses, the journey aspect, but it gets really old after a while. Although, the film also had a lot of funny parts. Like I said, the jury is still out on this film. I need to mull it over in my brain a little longer and compare it to the book, assuming I ever get it in the mail!
