Well that's the most damaging line I constantly hear travelling in this circle, the very question involves one's existence placed on a pedestal, so anything above such naysayer's vision is put to the axes, and there's no shortage of weaponries to toy with, bad raps grow to misinformation, ultimately the message diminish itself among such PEOPLE. But really who cares right?
I do, and I'm not alone. McCarthy is a man of wisdom, and usually such a figure practice preaching among others, it was heard plainly and concisely through the Jeweller's words that serve as the theme statement of the film. As if McCarthy knew of what was coming, therefore with almost child-like revenge, he made the film more difficult to follow.
Though our main protagonist and titled character, the counselor's story carries little to no weight in the development of events took place in the story. He does not even have a name in case you haven't realised, he has no places of business and no house realised in the story's universe. The counselor is purposefully crafted to be the witness, the visual realisation of the audience inside the story. The counselor is such a role that assesses the status quo, accepts reality-be it glory or defeat, makes judgement and not real decisions and often is the target for blame.
The counselor appears sophisticated and confident, much like the audience who have so grown to take this type of crime thriller for granted that they don't even try to follow the story. Only when it begins to be more challenging, they let themselves down rattling and dismissing. Lack of real enemy and no real approach to dodge his fate, the counselor embodies the audience and is utterly clueless.
The counselor symbolises our emotional anxiety and in this film, lost the frontline battle between good and evil, as a direct consequence of avarice. Whom to suffer but the innocent wife of religious purity.
McCarthy's first spec script is a bloody good time, the man's severe obsession to death has flourished from the randomness/madness expressed in No Country For Old Man to the masterfully cunning meaninglessness (the certainty of uncertainty demonstrated by all characters in this film).
When a snuff film was delivered at the end, our wildest imagination points us nowhere near the power behind the curtains, the audience is left to mistake the femme fatale of Malkina as some sort of intimidating realisation, when all she does is putting money into the next person's hand. The avarice is the initiation, but it doesn't have to be the conclusion. Cameron Diaz's final speech provides us with insights into her drive: everything is about sex, except sex itself which is about power struggle. "Cheetah kills the jackrabbits at 70 miles per hour with elegance" then Malkina moves on to order claiming she is "famished", when the power struggle is over, it's time to enjoy the reap.
The film ends on such a high note that would normally faint the hearts of any seriously-minded audience, but it didn't for it was swiftly equipped with only two clean slices of creative murdering and introverted conversations, which are either too gruesome or too demanding of repeats during playtime. Though I sense nobody is in this business for love, I'm glad somehow that pays off in this case.
Pointers: please do not waste your time trying to understand why Malkina left the counselor alive, the counselor wondered the street one night in Boise, and literally for once in his lifetime, stood in the position of someone disadvantaged and wronged, his urge to death and departure is much greater than living the status quo, that has to be realised. More importantly the counselor means nothing to Malkina, during their brief encounter at the party, Malkina barely said high but spanked the counselor a bit, the counselor has no value in attaining the money. Remember Cheetahs attack with precision and elegance, they do not stop off for a snack attack.
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