No Country for Old Men – the movie, the meaning
Yesterday evening I saw the last Oscar movie: “No Country for Old Men”. Motto: “There are no clean getaways”. It was mind blowing and all that violence and blood made me seek. I didn’t understand a thing before the end and most part of the people form the theater thought it was horrible.
NCFOL is definitely not an easy movie. I started understanding it as I re-played it again and again in my head and talked about it with my husband and friends.
As all things in life, this movie has its haters and lovers. The haters are hating is for shallow reasons (bad haircut, too much violence, the good guy died off screen, only 2 soundtracks etc) and the lovers are loving it for the meaning those shallow reasons are giving to the hole story and point of the movie.
This is my understanding of the movie, the way I see the things:
- The movie is about choices regarding the evil: you choose to fight it (as the sheriff’s father and Moss did) or try to avoid it as elegantly as possible (as the sheriff did). The consequences are obvious: fight the evil and you (could) die or avoid the evil and you survive. Now…what’s it gonna be? Our survival instinct is telling us to avoid the evil in order to survive, but what do you do when evil is knocking on your door and you have no choice then? Fortunately, evil has a dark sense of humor and offers you to toss a coin for your life. Now luck is choosing for you. If you decide not to toss the coin, you refuse to play by the evil’s rules and you die anyway (like Moss’s wife did).
- The title of the movie is giving us the answer to this problem: choose to fight the evil, people. Avoiding it will only lead to an unfulfilled life: the sheriff did not fulfill his destiny. But you don’t have to be a sheriff to fight evil, that’s for sure. For me, the message is clear: America, or any other country, is not a country for old men, for men who avoid fighting evil just to conserve their lives and get to grow old.
- Maybe part of our destiny is to fight evil, in the shape or form live is throwing at us. And I’m sure everyone has encountered evil in their lives, coming from outside or inside. An old saying suggests that a man’s life is completed when he planted a tree, built a house and had children. This movie adds “fight evil” to our destiny. Manic Street Preachers are singing about it: If you tolerate this, you children will be next.
- The movie does not have a happy end because, if You choose to avoid evil, Your life will not have a happy end either. Not even and interesting or memorable end. You just get to grow old, next to other old people, and wonder … the eternal wonder…what if you haven’t had missed it.
- Anton Chigurh is brilliantly played by Javier Bardem. Anton is embodying the evil, the pure evil which takes lives just because he can and wants to. Ironically, his name – Chigurh – sounds just like the word sugar; big mistake to name evil using the wrong words. Still, the best part is that evil – except for diseases and natural disasters — is made from flesh and blood. Fate produced an accident and showed us, literally, that evil is made from flesh and blood: “God, look at that bone.” says the one of the little boys with the bike. Do we need to be told what we can see for our own, that the Anton’s arm was broken and the bone was sticking out? Maybe yes, so that we finally understand that Anton is human, this evil is human.
Bottom line: when evil is produced by humans, is in our power and duty to (at least try harder to) stop it. The movie illustrated what happens if we do not do our best to fight evil: it wins, takes the money, and leaves us a bitter taste in our mouths – the taste of defeat.
I found the movie relaxing in a way that it told a complex story without sex, special effects, soundtracks or beautiful actors (the face of Tommy Lee Jones says it all).
My opinion, for those who did not like it, is to read the reviews on the web, with the good and bad, and go out and see the movie again. A movie that makes you think about life and causes so much feed back is worth seeing twice.
There’s much more to talk about this movie, as everyone understands it differently. What did you understand about this movie? Did it make any impression on you?
Feel free to post your comments below.
Aseara am vazut la cinematograf filmul de Oscar “No Country for Old Men”, tradus “Nu exista tara pentru batrani”. Motto: Nu exista o cale de scapare usoara. Este un film naucitor, iar toata violenta si varsarea de sange mi-au facut greata. Nu am inteles nimic din film pana nu am vazut finalul, iar mare parte din cei de la cinema au spus ca este oribil.
NCFOM cu siguranta nu este un film usor. Am inceput sa-l inteleg pe masura ce-l re-derulam in minte si l-am discutat cu sotul si prietenii mei.
Ca toate lucrurile in viata, acest film a nascut opinii pro si contra. Cei contra urasc filmul din motive superficiale (freza urata, prea multa violetna, personajul pozitiv a murit fara sa vedem, filmul are doar 2 melodii pe coloana sonora etc ) iar cei pro iubesc filmul pentru sensul pe care aceste motive superficiale il dau intregii povesti.
Din punctul meu de vedere, asa am inteles acest film :
- Filmul este despre alegerile in ceea ce priveste raul: alegi sa te lupti cu el (asa cum au facut tatal serifului si Moss) sau incerci sa il eviti cat mai elegant cu putinta (asa cum a facut seriful). Consecintele sunt evidente: lupta cu raul si ai (putea) muri sau evita raul si ai trai. Deci … ce alegi? Instinctul nostru de supravietuire ne spune sa evitam raul pentru a trai, dar ce faci cand raul iti bate la usa si atunci nu mai ai de ales? Din fericire, raul are un sens al umorului macabru si iti ofera sa pariezi viata ta pe aruncarea unei monezi. Acum norocul alege pentru tine. Daca alegi sa nu arunci moneda, inseamna ca refuzi sa joci dupa regulile raului si vei muri oricum (asa cum a patit sotia lui Moss).
- Titlul filmului ne raspunde la aceastra dilema: alegeti sa luptati, oameni. Daca veti evita confruntarea, aceasta va duce la o viata neimplinita: seriful nu ti-a implinit destinul. Dar, cu siguranta, nu trebuie sa fii serif sa te lupti cu raul. Pentru mine, mesajul este clar: America, sau orice alta tara, nu este o tara pentru oameni batrani, pentru oameni care au ales sa evite raul pentru a-si conserva viata si a imbatrani.
- Poate ca o parte a destinului nostru este sa lupam cu raul, in orice forma sau marime il intalnim in vietile noastre. Si sunt sigura ca fiecare a intalnit raul in viata sa, venind din exterior sau interior. O veche zicala spune ca viata unui om este completa dupa ce a plantat un copac, a cosntruit o casa si a crescut copii. Acest film adauga si “lupta cu raul” destinului nostru. Formatia Manic Street Preachers au un cantec pe aceeasi tema: If you tolerate this, your children will be next (!).
- Filmul nu are un final fericit deoarece, daca alegi sa eviti raul, nici viata ta nu va avea un final fericit. Nici macar un final interesant sau memorabil. Doar imbatranesti, alaturi de alti batrani, si te intrebi … eterna intrebare … cum ar fi fost daca nu ai fi ratat.
- Personajul Anton Chigurh este jucat stralucit de Javier Bardem (rol pentru care a luat Oscarul). Anton este personificarea raului, a raului pur care omoara doar pentru ca poate si vrea. In mod ironic, numele sau — Chigurh – suna la fel ca “sugar” (zahar); acest fapt sugereaza o posibila greseala de a numi raul folosind cuvinte gresite. Totusi, partea buna este ca raul – cu exceptia bolilor si dezastrelor naturale – este facut din carnea si oase. Destinul a produs un accident si ne-a aratat, pur si simplu, ca raul este facut din carne si oase: “Dumnezeule, uita-te la osul ala”, spune unul din baietii cu bicicleta. Este necesar sa ni se spuna de mai multe ori ceea ce vedem si singuri, ca bratul lui Anton este rupt si osul ii iese prin piele? Poate ca da, ca sa intelegem in sfarsit ca Anton este uman, ca acest rau (violenta) este uman.
Concluzie: cand raul este produs de oameni, sta in puterea si datoria noastre sa (facem tot posibilul sa) il oprim. Filmul ilustreaza ce se intampla daca nu facem tot ce putem sa luptam cu raul: el castiga, ia banii si ne lasa un gust amar in gura – gustul infrangerii.
Filmul mi s-a parut relaxant in felul in care a spus o poveste complexa fara ajutorul sexului, efectelor speciale spectaculoase, muzicii sau actorilor frumosi (fata lui Tomy Lee Jones spune totul).
Dupa parerea mea, cei carora nu le-a placut filmul, sa citeasca cronicile de pe net, cu bune si rele, si sa mearga sa-l mai vada odata. Un film care te face sa te gandesti la viata si cauzeaza atat de multe discutii merita vazut de doua ori.
Mai sunt multe de spus despre acest film. Fiecare il intelege diferit. Postati comentariile voastre mai jos, daca doriti sa va impartasiti punctul de vedere.
Ce ati inteles despre acest film? Cum v-a impresionat?
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