True Grit (2010)

You may be aware that this film is a remake of a John Wayne-vehicle. Now, I've never been a fan of mr Wayne (except when he's called Bruce), but if there was one film starring Wayne that I would see on occasion, it would be 'True Grit'.

Why?

Because it's not your usual machismo tale for a change. But we must also be honest: those films haven't aged all that well. So the Coen brothers decided to rework this one, which is in all fairness the most likely choice for them to remake, seeing as this one is more in line with their other works.

Hailee Steinfeld plays Mattie Ross, a stubborn fourteen-year-old who wants to avenge the death of her father but finds few people willing to listen, probably because she is a lot smarter and more forward than most 'adults' can handle. She does however, find marshal Rooster Cogburn, a triggerhappy drunk. The old, grumpy marshall doesn't want to do it at first, but maybe he is swayed by her money or her attitude. In any case, he goes on the hunt for the man that shot Mattie's father. Mattie joins him as she wants to make sure he does what he set out to do, and their company is rounded out by a Texas Ranger by the name of LaBoeuf.

As you might expect from a Coen Brothers endeavour, this is not a typical western. It's a lot more gritty and downbeat for starters. There are no heroes here, just people trying to survive. Even the bad guys aren't evil, they just do what they do because they also need to survive and found the best way to do that was to resort to crime. Heck, the big bad that shot Mattie's father is a man that basically is a simpleton. So much for imposing villainy.

But you might have guessed that stripping the myth of the West down, was part of what the Coens set out to do. They make the focus of their story the people. It is a nice change of pace, and even though this universe is not filled with quirky characters like in most of their other films, you get sucked in by the performances. Or should I say: 'performance'? Because if there is one that is brilliant, it is Jeff Bridges as Rooster. He's a disillusioned man, living from drink to drink yet ready to do his job, because it is all he knows. He literally has nothing else.

The downside is that his companions don't really do it for me. Matt Damon as LaBoeuf feels too clean cut. This is probably done to contrast him to Bridges, but he doesn't feel as genuine in the part. Also, Hailee Steinfeld is written to be a rather unlikeable girl. You get that she has to be tough and cold, because to her, it's the only way she can get things done in this harsh world, but at times, she really becomes insufferable.

If you're expecting a 'regular' Western, you won't find it here. What you will find is a slow burning, realistic character piece, that perhaps could have been more engaging at times.