Review of True Grit (2010) by Ryangee — 27 Dec 2010

Underneath the drawn out tension of the Coen's Brothers remake True Grit, is a subtle and lighthearted emotion led by the break out performance of Hailee Steinfeld. If you are expecting the eccentric storytelling and essential rawness seen in Fargo or No Country For Old Men, True Grit is ultimately uninspiring. But in this effort, the Coen brothers smooth out their usual sharp edges, in order to make a film that is pure and an effective homage to a once prominent genre in film.

True Grit as stated earlier, is a remake of John Hathaway's 1969 film starring John Wayne, which led to the legendary actor's only Oscar. After her father's death, we follow Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) , a precocious 14-year old who seeks retribution on the murderer John Chaney (Josh Brolin). Mattie decides to hire U.S Marshall Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) because of his merciless manner in dealing with the law. At the beginning of the hunt, Cogburn decides to team up with Texas Ranger LeBeouf (Matt Damon) in this often humorous and gritty journey.

While Bridges and Damon both put on respectable performances-with Bridges putting on a different twist to Wayne's character- it is newcomer Hailee Steinfeld who steals the show. Steinfeld's puts intensity and zeal into her character that emphasizes her independence and her presumptuous manner. The Coen brothers put more focus into Steinfeld's character rather than Bridge's Cogburn. I find this a wise decision as the film is able to blend an affable feeling with the somewhat dark humor reminiscent in Barton Fink or Fargo. While True Grit provides great performances, it is not the action adventure that its advertisements imply that it is. Rather, the film is extremely talky, which is one of the few film techniques similar to the Coens' previous efforts. This is not necessarily a bad aspect, as most of the lines are derived from the Charles Portis novel that the film is adapting. In other words, the dialogue still remains humorous and intriguing, but it lacks the action and zest of a contemporary Western. As a result, there is a whole lot of drawn out tension that is only somewhat released by the end. Overall, True Grit is visually beautiful and packs a punch in great acting. But as I have to emphasize again, the film is essentially a disappointing Coen film, but is a solid remake to a classic film.