"True Grit" was released in the USA in 2010. The screenplay is based on the novel of the same name by Charles Portis and the film was directed by Ethan and Joel Coen.
This two hour-long western stars Jeff Bridges, Josh Brolin, Matt Damon and Hailee Steinfeld.
Synopsis: Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) is determined to avenge the death of her father who was killed in cold blood by the cowardly Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin). Despite only being 14 years old Mattie employs Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) a U.S. Marshal and one-eyed alcoholic known for being trigger-happy to capture Chaney. LaBoeuf (Matt Damon), a tough Texas Ranger, is already chasing the murderer. LaBoeuf and Cogburn reluctantly join up and even more reluctantly take Mattie along with them on their manhunt.
A Coen brothers film is always something special. They have a string of successful films all of which would figure on my "All Time Favourite Films" list : "No Country for Old Men", "O Brother", "The Big Lebowski" and "Burn After Reading".
Charles Portis' novel, published in 1968, was previously adapted for film in 1969 by Henry Hathaway and was produced as "True Grit" starring John Wayne as Rooster Cogburn - a role for which Wayne won an Oscar.
The Coens have respected the traditional "western" genre of the novel and the original film. From the beginning the viewer is immersed in the American Wild West. The sets are superb and the wonderful opening scenes offer only a glimpse of the amazing wideshots to come. The whole film takes place in a landscape of incredible natural beauty. There are also some striking scenes of harsh realism - in the city and on the train. It's beautiful, and we plunge with pleasure in this world of "the western" of "goodies" and "baddies".
The production is polished and, as always, the Coen brothers insert touches of humour and derision, in just the right quantities, throughout the narrative. This technique serves to enrich the humanity being portrayed - as well as being funny.
The narrative is very dynamic but the dialogue is too long in parts and there are occasional dips in pace. It often happens with adaptations of novels - the text is lingered over to make sure that the viewer receives the complicated details that the reader of a novel has time to ponder over. That one gripe aside I loved the film.
The cast is great. Jeff Bridges in the role of an alcoholic Marshall is perfect. He slips into character and plays it with great ease. His Rooster Cogburn is a lovable bottle-and-trigger-happy older guy, he's been there and seen it all. Before seeing the film I had my doubts about Matt Damon as tough-as-nails Ranger LaBoeuf. But he was confident in the role and filled it full of the idiosyncracies that make a character great. And Josh Brolin portrayed an excellent "baddie" whose badness disturbs us as such people should. Finally Hailee Steinfeld as 14 year old Mattie, intent on revenge, is a revelation. She blends the determination of a confident young woman who has matured quickly as a result of her father's murder with the vulnerability of a confused, bereaved child.
I'd say that "True Grit" is one of the best Coen brother films. Its dark sets, incredible scenery, high-end casting and surprises adds up to a little gem of a film that should not be missed.