Few will argue that Joel and Ethan Coen are two of the most original and idiosyncratic filmmaking auteurs of the past 30 years. Since 1984, the pair has collaboratively written, produced and directed some 15 feature films, each one more distinctive than the next and impossible to put a label on. When they do dabble in a genre ( Blood Simple, The Man Who Wasn't There, Miller's Crossing), they throw it on its ear, infusing its with their unique wit, language and style.
Three years ago the duo put their talents to work adapting Cormac McCarthy's contemporary Western No Country For Old Men and finally won a long-deserved Best Picture Oscar. So when they turned their attention to adapting Charles Portis' classic Western True Grit, the possibilities were intriguing to say the least.
True Grit opens with Mattie Ross (newcomer Hailee Steinfeld) arriving by train in Fort Smith, Arkansas to retrieve the body of her recently murdered father. Just 14 years old, Mattie is precocious to say the least. She quickly sets about squaring her father's affairs and finding out what is being done to track down his killer, hired-hand Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin).
When the local law shows no interest in tracking Chaney across Indian territory, Mattie propositions feisty U.S. Marshall Rueben "Rooster" Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) to undertake the manhunt, with her in tow. With his bear-like physique, mumbled verse and gaudy eye patch, Cogburn initially has no interest in playing wet-nurse on Mattie's crusade but eventually agrees under her unrelenting persistence. Accompanied by LaBoeuf (Matt Damon), a pompous Texas Ranger who's hunting Chaney for another crime, the three unlikely companions set out across the territory to get their man.
Bridges is a hoot as Cogburn, chewing up every inch of the role as if it were a carrot stick, and Damon is pitch-perfect as LaBoeuf, displaying all the comedic traits that made his earlier role in The Informant so effective. Brolin is quietly unsettling as Chaney and and the always-good Barry Pepper provides memorable supporting work as outlaw Lucky Ned Pepper. But the real standout is Steinfeld, her energy and verve stealing nearly every scene from her more seasoned co-stars.
True Grit is an extremely entertaining and satisfying adventure reminiscent of the big Hollywood Westerns of the '50s and '60s. While not the genre-bender some fans may have hoped for, it is still very much a Coen Brothers film, one that fits nicely in their canon and instantly makes you pine for their next unique trip out West.
