I had a lot of expectations going into True Grit. I had seen the preview for this film a few times and knew that this movie had a stellar cast, but had no real sense as to what this movie was about. All I knew was that Jeff Bridges was in it, and that Matt Damon played a key roll in it. After hearing a few of my friends say how good it was, I figured I would give it a shot.
About halfway through you start to get bored. The movie is slow for a modern day western, but doesn’t require a lot of attention to know what’s going on. A man was killed, his daughter (mighty young for a vigilante) wants revenge, and she hires a United States Marshal to track down and arrest the killer. Seems simple enough. The majority of the film follows the girl, the US Marshal and a Texas Ranger hot on the trail of the killer. Eventually the young girl goes to fetch some fresh water, and spots the murderer across the creek. In typical old western style, chaos ensues.
I am not saying that this film is bad. It was a good movie and I am glad that I went to see it. But I just think so many films these days are getting too much hype. This story has been told before; it’s nothing new. It’s not a major blockbuster in my opinion.
Now, the highlight of this film comes in the acting. Jeff Bridges, also the star of the major hit film Tron (also in theaters right now) puts on one of his, if not his best performance. The title of the film is also a PERFECT way to describe his character. You are introduced to him early on and in every scene you are just blown away with how natural he makes this character seem. He is just a great actor in every sense of the word. He deserves several awards for his roll in Tron, but he also deserves a few for his roll in True Grit.
Don’t waste your money seeing this in the theater. Wait until it’s out on DVD and then watch it. The film was directed by Ethan and Joel Coen (never been a big fan of those guys). This movie gets 3/5 stars, and would have been less if it weren’t for Jeff’s incredible roll in this film.
Yes, it was done before in 1970 with John Wayne, Robert Duvall, Glen Cambell; it was a book. However, this time around it was told much more true to the book. I think it best to be seen on the big screen. Don’t miss the best movie of the year.
Best movie of the year? Are you kidding me? I have seen movies that suck that are better than this. Have you seen Tron? That is hands down the best film of the year. What did you take away from True Grit? I get it that it was a remake. There is very little that comes out of Hollywood these days that is an original idea. But this movie was not that good. Jeff Bridges is the ONLY thing that saved me from walking out of the theater.
Well, what helped is that my family name is mentioned a few times, but well acted across the board, even though I knew what was going to happen next. I was anxious to see it unfold. It was dry, bit of humor and a great genre. I am a western kind of guy. I will see Tron this week.