'No Country For Old Men' Movie

Watch the trailer here:  http://movies.aol.com/movie/no-country-for-old-men/25145/main

Javier Bardem, the actor featured above also stars in the Cholera film and another one, Goya's Ghosts,  that got disappointing reviews and a limited showing but we liked it: http://movies.aol.com/movie/goyas-ghosts/26832/main

There are two ways of judging an adaptation: One can compare it to the source for better or worse, or one can ignore the original and judge the adaptation on its own merits. Since I haven't read Cormac McCarthy's 2005 novel, I'll base my opinion on what I saw at a packed matinee.  The media reviews have been good but readers blogs have been trashing it for its inconclusive ending. When it was over, one guy near me shouted: "WTF??"  Many around me laughed and grumbled as we knew what he meant. Some reviews say this movie is the best thing the Coen Brothers have done since Fargo but I thought that one was overrated.

Technically this is a well photographed and edited movie with many good performances and sharp dialogue. Josh Brolin, who also was fine as a dirty cop in American Gangster, shines here as a desperate man fleeing with stolen drug money while ruthlessly pursued by a sadistic hitman played with cocky cruelty by Bardem. They almost upstage Tommy Lee Jones as the sly, old sheriff on their trail.  There's plenty of suspense and action scenes filled with lots of killing to satisfy most fans of this kind of movie but all this doesn't make up for leading us to the unsatisfying ending. I recommend this movie for its merits and you should judge for yourself about the conclusion.