No Country for Old Men: Real Ecology and Fate Choreography Shrouded in the Shadow of Death

At the 80th Academy Awards, "No Country for Old Men" filmed by the Coen Brothers became the worthy winner under the much-anticipated expectation. It seemed that everything was as expected and won four awards including the best picture in one fell swoop. However, this film has also caused a lot of war of words both inside and outside the industry, especially when there is a very good masterpiece "Blood Will Come" to compete with it (to be honest, as a die-hard fan of PTA, I also mind it. ), the evaluation is obviously polarized and the development is serious. It is not full of praises and praises, or all kinds of harsh criticisms to the end, and opinions vary.

In my opinion, this is a masterpiece without a doubt, but whether we can see the profound substance rich in philosophies through the ups and downs of horror, and whether we can feel the drunkenness of the Coen brothers is not the key point, but more hidden behind it. With a big idea, I saw that many fans were still holding on to the main story line. Very frustrating, the perception will inevitably be equated with disappointment.

The story of this film can be summed up in one sentence, that is, "Two Million Fatal Cases". The Hong Kong translation has made the most direct and clear introduction to the plot. "No Country for Old Men" is based on the same name of the famous American literary giant Cormac McCarthy. Adapted from the novel, the Coen brothers used their usual dark and humorous style to transform the ingenious and heavy text into more intuitive, figurative and rich images. The quintessence and artistic conception of the film may be perfect on the screen, and only these two brothers can do it.

In the orderly rhythm and neat and tidy transitions, the elements of violence and blood will be more violent and straightforward. For a while, it is like breaking into the world of images where Quentin is killing people, making people feel unpredictable and cold Killer Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) killed several times without blinking an eye. His heart was twisted into a twist, and he was a little scared and kicked out in a cold sweat. The Coen brothers almost abandoned the role of the soundtrack, and the natural sound effects created The realistic atmosphere is more cautious.

This time, the Coen brothers are still cooperating with their old partner, the well-known photographer Roger Deakins. Although he has not won the Oscar for many years, his undoubted strength is obvious to all, and there is no need for the proof of the golden man. "No Country for Old Men" The camera stick in the camera is almost speechless, Deakins superbly play with infinite possibilities of light and shadow, whether it is night vision or backlight, whether it is desert, street, indoor or outdoor, in flexible scheduling and lens control You can always see his brilliant ideas and genius ideas.

In particular, the shock brought by the long shot, as well as the sensitive response and high-level taste for the beauty of the image, naturally reveal sophistication and delicacy, and the beauty and situation exuded are stunned. It fits perfectly, so much for the grim and depressing flavor that the whole movie strives to create.

This film has absolutely high requirements for the performance of the actors. It needs to rely on the outstanding strength to provide strong dramatic tension in the simple plot direction. The actors must have a deep and introverted foundation. The actors selected by the Coen Brothers this time are interesting in old dramas. Bone Tommy Lee Jones and the powerful actor Josh Brolin, who has worked with many times, are loyal readers of Cormac McCarthy, and at the same time participated with great interest and invested in it.

Of course, the most eye-catching is the wonderful performance of the Spanish heavyweight actor Javier Bardem. It is no exaggeration to describe his role as possessed by demons. His whole body exudes a gloomy, crazy and terrifying atmosphere. The face will involuntarily tremble. After the evil Jack in "The Shining", another creepy classic character was born. After watching it, it left a lingering impression in my mind, you can It is said that it has caused a psychological shadow that cannot be estimated.

I believe that many fans still remember the final dark ending of Polanski's "Chinatown" (1974). And the hint of dark social phenomenon, let's look at "No Country for Old Men" again. The story mainly takes place in the more desolate and remote west and borders of the United States. In the face of the usual phenomenon of indiscriminate killing of innocents and wanton killings, the local security system seems to be powerless. From the sheriff's attitude and speech, we can understand a very dark, chaotic and negative social environment in the local area.

Sudden bloody storms are common, and many people try to stay out of it as much as possible. The sheriff played by Tommy Lee Jones in the film is obviously very aware of the local rules of survival. The local atmosphere is far from the same. He has been deeply influenced by the style of his predecessors and has rich experience. He also seems to have no ability to fight back. In the process of law enforcement, he frequently shows his incompetence and always becomes the one left behind. Many of the lines in this film are the finishing touch. The strokes of the pen have meanings and are also very meaningful. Looking back on the dialogue between the sheriff and different characters, you can feel a social problem that is upside down instead of suppressing evil, and his identity situation where he has more than enough power.

The fuse of the whole story is that Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) accidentally picked up a huge sum of two million in the drug trade. Out of consideration for his family, he did not rule out greedy human nature and instinctively took it for himself. So much so that he got into trouble and started a "cat-and-mouse game" of fighting wits and courage. The ruthless Anton chased and killed Llewelyn was quite thrilling, especially the terrifying punching bag, which will undoubtedly become the most ferocious in this century. And one of the horror murder weapons, Llewelyn is good at judgment, at least he still has normal human nature, and his completely reckless actions under his selfish desires eventually lead to the destruction of the family.

As for Anton, who belongs to an abnormal human being, in his act of completely abandoning humanity, he carried forward the evil for no reason. He is undoubtedly the incarnation of the devil. Aside from the black and white confrontation between him and the sheriff, from the standpoint of others , you can realize the driving and temptation of interests to people themselves, as well as the decisive role in life and death. Most people seem to be doing things for money, and they are also paying a painful price for money.

Let's look at the top priority of the film, that is, the fate of no solution. This has always been a key word and a prominent label carried by the Coen brothers' films. What many people are puzzled and do not understand is that they thought Llewelyn and Anton would Let's have a life-and-death cool fight, I never thought that Llewelyn would die so easily, and he was killed by the Mexicans, like the gimmicks I wrote before to create boring mainstream and clichéd movie scenes are not Coen Brothers at all The intention is by no means their unconventional style.

There must be a deeper connotation in it, that is, the randomness and contingency constructed by fate, the unpredictable and unpredictable and impermanent of the world with the destined inviolable helplessness, which makes it impossible for people to be above him, and it is difficult to take the initiative. , an unknowable and unpredictable life trend, in the face of fate, people seem extremely fragile and insignificant, we never know what will happen next, get something for nothing? Crazy chase? Terrorist attacks? Scarred all over? Car accident? Or death?

In the film, Anton uses coins to easily decide life and death twice, which is like a symbol of artificial demonstration of fate. The first time was an innocent and inexplicable gas station salesperson who guessed right and saved the day. The second time was Llewelyn's. Wife, she said: "Coins can't determine my life and death, you can." But it didn't bring him any hope of survival. This sentence has insights and directions about human nature, but at the same time, her ending also reflects human beings. The sadness that is difficult to contend with fate can be recalled. In fact, the whole movie is shrouded in a strong atmosphere of death.

Every time the audience is shocked by the sudden accident in the film, people continue to die unexpectedly, Mexican drug dealers with corpses everywhere, the deputy sheriff who was strangled by Anton, and passers-by, counter waiters who died tragically under his hands, Mexican guy, mob boss, wife of Wells and Llewelyn, pay special attention to the mother of Llewelyn's wife who died of cancer, including a nutritious conversation between the sheriff and the elderly living alone, and Anton who has been doing whatever he wants near the end of the green light He was suddenly hit by an unruly vehicle while driving.

Experience the title of the film "No Country for Old Men", including the narration and dreams that echo the beginning and end, the powerlessness after entering old age under the influence of parents in a real situation that is not what it used to be, and the inherent evil that is inhumane, I believe that the Coen brothers did not just want to show the truth that "people die for wealth, and birds die for food". The exposure and thinking of human nature are part of it, but showing the reality of living is a bigger part. Everyone seems to live Under the careful arrangement of fate, it is constructed into a paradoxical and bizarre cause and effect, which makes it difficult for people to break free and resist.

To experience the real unease and horror in the unknown and impermanence, perhaps what the Coen brothers want to convey in the people and things triggered by this incident is that what makes people feel terrifying from the bottom of their hearts is not limited to Anton's unreasonable Acts and the image of a murderous maniac, or the sensory stimulation brought by the wanton violence in the film, but at the psychological and spiritual level, they are deeply aware of the helplessness and powerlessness that arise from the passivity of existence and the uncontrollable fate.

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