Somebody's gonna win an Oscar, people! Maybe the young actress who plays Mattie Ross, maybe the Coen Bros. themselves. Jeff Bridges is not allowed, because he won last year, but he may get a nomination for his performance -- one I enjoyed a heck of a lot. I found the movie in general to be a beautifully produced, well-acted take on the classic story.
I must admit I've never seen the 1974 version. Strange, but somehow it's just one of those movies that slipped under my radar. However, this made for a real treat when I went to see the new Coen Bros. version, as I was only familiar with the story in the barebones sense.
I thought the Coen Bros. managed to capture a world and its language with exceptional brilliance. The story is a simple one but compelling. A daughter's revenge sets in motion a set of events that pit good versus evil, and each of the characters must choose which side of that moral divide they want to be on. While avoiding some of the darker elements that might have been addressed when a girl of 14 wanders into the wilderness with the drunkard Rooster Cogburn and the strange Mr. LeBoeuf (a self-effacing and effective Matt Damon), I found it enjoyable to see how basic human decency, however flawed, can slometimes prevail over evil.
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