The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

Written, produced, edited, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a collection of stories set in the American West as it play into the many adventures of misadventures of people in the West. The film is an anthology film of sorts that play into six different stories relating to the West. Starring Tim Blake Nelson, Tyne Daly, James Franco, Tom Waits, Zoe Kazan, Harry Melling, Liam Neeson, and Brendan Gleeson. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a majestic yet whimsical film from the Coen Brothers.

Set in the American West, the film follow six different stories in the American West as it all relates to the themes of death as well as people’s encounter with it. All of which is told in a book about these tales of the West and these characters as they encounter with some idea of death. In The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, a cowboy arrives into town singing songs as he also disposes challengers through gunfights while also commenting about the ideas of humanity where he meets a new challenger. Near Algodones is about a bank robber is attacked by the bank’s clerk where pots and pans where he’s later knocked out and captured by a mysterious man in black only for the day to get weirder following an attack by the Comanche, an encounter with a drover, and all sorts of bad shit in one strange day. Meal Ticket revolves around an impresario travels through the cold West with his performer in a young legless/armless artist who recites poetry, stories, and other texts where they endure a declining audience and lack of money prompting the impresario to find a new act.

All Gold Canyon, that is based on a story by Jack London, is about a prospector arrives on a mountain valley to find gold as he dwells into the land to find gold where he makes a discovery but also another one that is far more deadly. In The Gal Who Got Rattled that is inspired by story by Stewart Edward White, a young woman is on the Oregon Trail with her dim-witted older brother who dies suddenly of cholera where she befriends a train leader who is sympathetic to her plight as he thinks about having a future with her once the trail ends. The Mortal Remains is about five different people traveling on a stagecoach as tension arises during the journey as they all tell their own views while dealing with the fact that there’s a dead body on top of the stagecoach as some wonder why. These six different stories play into themes that play into the danger and uncertainty of the West as well as the realities of a world that is ever-changing.

The direction of the Coen Brothers definitely owe a lot to Westerns of the past but also provide their own visual language in the film as it relates to the presentation of the different stories in the film. Each story opens with a picture in the book and closes with the last page of that story as it’s told through a book as it would then cut to a landscape as many of the film’s locations are shot in the Nebraskan Panhandle, New Mexico, and Telluride in Colorado. The Coen Brothers’ direction would have these gorgeous wide shots of certain locations where they also create these striking compositions that add to the beauty whether it’s a shot of a man about to be hanged or a certain location in the valley. While there are comical elements in these stories with the titular story being the most comical of them all as it’s partially a musical. The rest range into elements of dark comedy as it relates to the theme of death as it play into the sense of melancholia and changing times of the West that is evident in stories such as Meal Ticket and The Gal Who Got Rattled as the former is largely dramatic and minimalist in its story while the latter is more about this uncertainty on the Oregon Trail.

Serving as editors under the Roderick Jaynes pseudonym, the Coen Brothers’ approach to the editing help add to not just the drama but also humor with its usage of jump-cuts and dissolves along with rhythmic cuts in certain aspects of the film. Most particularly in All Gold Canyon where the prospector (Tom Waits) is digging holes trying to find gold along with the montage of the artist in Harrison (Harry Melling) reciting famous texts to the growing declining audience in Meal Ticket. The usage of close-ups and medium shots are evident in The Mortal Remains as it is shot largely inside the stagecoach to play into the dramatic tension as well as the sense of intrigue of where the five passengers are going. It is the Coen Brothers playing into the dangers of the American West as they definitely show violent moments that are graphic as it add to the specter of death. Overall, the Coen Brothers craft an evocative yet offbeat film about six strange tales in the American West.

Cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its usage of natural lighting for some of the exteriors in the daytime along with the usage of tints and filters for some interior scenes along with shots set at night or in the evening as it’s a highlight of the film. Production designer Jess Gonchor, with set decorator Nancy Haigh plus art directors Steve Christensen and Chris Farmer, does amazing work with the look of the buildings that some of the characters go to including the saloons as well as the stagecoach and wagons for some parts of the film. Costume designer Mary Zophres does fantastic work with the costumes as it play into the period of the times from the shiny look of the titular character to the rougher and ragged look of other cowboys as it’s a highlight of the film.

Makeup effects supervisor Robin Myriah Hatcher does terrific work with the look of the characters with the artist being the most notable as well as a few passengers on the stagecoach. Visual effects supervisors Michael Huber and Alex Lemke do excellent work with the visual effects where it does do bits of set-dressing in some parts while doing its best work on the look of the artist. Sound editors Craig Berkey and Skip Lievsay do superb work with the sound as it help play into the atmosphere of the locations as well as how gunfire and such sounds during a few gun battles in the film. The film’s music by Carter Burwell is incredible for its rich and bombastic musical score that feature some flourishing string arrangements along with elements of folk and country music to play into the air of the times.

The casting by Ellen Chenoweth is wonderful as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from E.E. Bell as a piano saloon player, Tom Proctor as a Cantina bad man, and David Krumholtz as a saloon Frenchman in the titular segment while Jesse Luken as the drover and Ralph Ineson as the Man in Black are terrific in their brief appearances in Near Algodones. In the titular opening segment, the performances of Clancy Brown as the gambler Curly Joe, Willie Watson as a young gunslinger, and Tim Blake Nelson as the titular character are great with Nelson being a jovial and engaging individual who sings about his exploits while being a great gunslinger. In Near Algodones, Stephen Root is fantastic as the bank teller who is more than prepared for a bank robbery while James Franco is superb as the robber who finds himself in dangerous situations. Liam Neeson and Harry Melling are incredible in their respective roles as the impresario and the artist named Harrison in the Meal Ticket segment with Neeson being largely silent as a man trying to make money while Melling displays a charisma through the things he says.

Tom Waits is brilliant as the prospector trying to find gold in All Gold Canyon while Sam Dillon is wonderful in his small role as a young man trying to rob the prospector. In The Girl Who Got Rattled, the performances of Zoe Kazan as Alice Longabaugh, Bill Heck as Billy Knapp, and Grainger Haines as Mr. Arthur are amazing with Kazan being the major standout as a young woman coping with her situation while there’s notable small roles from Jefferson Mays as Alice’s brother Gilbert and Ethan Dubin as Matt who is trying to cheat Alice. In The Mortal Remains, the performances of Tyne Daly as the devout Christian woman, Saul Rubinek as the Frenchman, Chelcie Ross as trapper, Jonjo O’Neill as the Englishman, and Brendan Gleeson as the Irishman all sitting at the stagecoach are excellent to play into the tension and differences of these individuals as they deal with the journey ahead and their destination as well as the reality of their environment.

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a sensational film from Joel and Ethan Coen. Featuring a great ensemble cast, compelling stories on death and the unexpected elements of life, gorgeous cinematography, and an incredible music score and soundtrack. It’s a film that is an unusual yet engaging anthology film of sorts set in the American West that play into all sorts of situations and stories that all relate to uncertainty in those times. In the end, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a phenomenal film from Joel and Ethan Coen.

Coen Brothers Films: Blood Simple - Raising Arizona - Miller's Crossing - Barton Fink - The Hudsucker Proxy - Fargo - The Big Lebowski - O Brother, Where Art Thou? - The Man Who Wasn't There - Intolerable Cruelty - The Ladykillers - Paris Je T'aime-Tulieres -To Each His Own Cinema-World Cinema - No Country for Old Men - Burn After Reading - A Serious Man - True Grit - Inside Llewyn Davis - Hail, Caesar!

The Auteurs #9: The Coen Brothers: Pt. 1 - Pt. 2

© thevoid99 2018

Bad Santa

Directed by Terry Zwigoff and written by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, Bad Santa is the story of an alcoholic thief who dresses up as Santa Claus where he and his partner hope to rob a mall where he copes with his own self-loathing but also help a young kid. The film is a dark comedy where a man dressed up as Santa Claus tries to find reasons for living though he still feels like he is at odds with the world as the titular character is played by Billy Bob Thornton. Also starring Lauren Graham, Brett Kelly, Tony Cox, Lauren Tom, Bernie Mac, Cloris Leachman, and John Ritter in his final film performance as Bob Chipeska. Bad Santa is an offbeat yet exhilarating film from Terry Zwigoff.

The film revolves around a pathetic, self-loathing alcoholic who works in malls dressed up as Santa Claus as part of an act where he and his midget-partner plan to steal money from malls during the holidays until the man meets a bullied young boy and finds himself caring for him. It’s a film that is sort of an anti-Christmas film in some ways yet it is really about this man that realizes that there is good in the world and doesn’t have to go into this world of self-destruction and self-loathing while can still be perverse such as his liaisons with a bartender who has a fetish for men in Santa’s clothing. It all plays into a world that is quite odd as this man named Willie T. Soke is just someone that is quite amoral as he spends his time in smalls having sex with whoever he sees, gets drunk, or does all sorts of things much to the annoyance of his partner Marcus (Tony Cox).

The film’s script by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, with re-writes by the film’s executive producers in Joel & Ethan Coen, doesn’t just explore Soke’s own disdain towards society and himself but also in the fact that he unknowingly finds himself being intrigued by this young boy who not only sees him as the real Santa but also someone he believes is actually good despite the awful shit he does. While Soke is seen early in the film being a skilled safecracker, it is clear that his attempts to be part of society fails because of his anti-social behavior which is fueled more by his alcoholism. Even as he ponders about his own purpose in life until he meets this kid where he realizes that he does have a reason to live. Still, he and Marcus have to do the job to steal things but they realize that a security officer named Gin (Bernie Mac) knows what is going on as he wants in on the action which only make things worse. Especially when Willie begins to have a change of heart as he realizes not just the true meaning of Christmas but also in doing what is right.

Terry Zwigoff’s direction is largely straightforward in terms of the compositions he creates but also finds way to create moments that are very funny. While some of the comedic moments were helmed by an unknown filmmaker for its theatrical release, there are moments that is still Zwigoff’s film in the way he presents Soke as this pathetic, unruly man that is often obsessed with sleeping with women or just getting shit-faced. Shot largely on location in Los Angeles and parts of Southern California, the film does play into a world where it is warm in an odd way considering that it is set during the Xmas holidays. The usage of wide and medium shots do play into the look of the malls and some of the locations in California as Arizona. Yet, Zwigoff finds way to convey that sense of dark humor where it can toe the line over what is profane but also what is funny. Even in scenes that play into moments that are quite natural as well as showcase that Soke can be redeemed such as a scene where he beats up a bully and feeling very good afterwards. The climatic heist is filled with tension but also a bit of unexpected sentimentality as it relates to Soke’s own revelations about himself and doing what is right as it would end in a very funny way. Overall, Zwigoff creates a bawdy yet whimsical film about a self-loathing thief finding some meaning during the Xmas holidays.

Cinematographer Jamie Anderson does excellent work with the film‘s cinematography to play into the colorful look of the locations in the day to the usage of lights for many of the interior scenes set at night. Editor Robert Hoffman does nice work with the editing as it is largely straightforward with some rhythmic cuts for some of the film‘s very funny moments. Production designer Sharon Seymour, with set decorator Robert Greenfield and art director Peter Borck, does fantastic work to the look of the mall as well as the home of the kid that Stokes befriends.

Costume designer Wendy Chuck does wonderful work with the costumes in creating some stylish costumes from the ragged look of Soke’s Santa suit to the clothes that Marcus wears as an elf. Sound editors Michael J. Benavente and Larry Kemp do terrific work with the sound from the way liquor bottles and such sound in the background along with the atmosphere of the malls. The film’s music by David Kitay is amazing for its mixture of piano-based music as well as playful orchestral touches while music supervisor Rachel Levy creates a fun soundtrack featuring a variety of Xmas standards along with some classical pieces to play into the film’s humor.

The casting by Felicia Fasano and Mary Vernieu do incredible work with the casting as it features some notable small roles from Ethan Phillips as the boy’s incarcerated father, Tom McGowan as the original mall Santa Claus who quits early in the film, Ajay Naidu as some nut job who attacks Soke over a misunderstanding, Alex Borstein as a mom from a different mall, Octavia Spencer as a prostitute Stokes know in Cleo, Matt Walsh as a neighbor who asks Soke about putting some decorations for the neighborhood, Max Van Ville as the kid’s bully, and Cloris Leachman in a very funny performance as the kid’s senile yet funny grandmother. Lauren Tom is wonderful as Marcus’ mail-order bride Lois who only cares for idiotic things.

Bernie Mac is fantastic as the mall security chief Gin Slagel as a man that is suspicious about Soke and Marcus only wanting half of what they steal in a bargain that makes Soke very uncomfortable. In his final film performance, John Ritter is excellent as the mall’s manager Bob Chipeska as a man that is trying to make sure things go smoothly as he is taken aback by Soke’s behavior as well as Marcus’ own appearance as it’s a very funny performance from Ritter. Lauren Graham is amazing as Sue as a bartender Soke befriends and goes out with as she has a fetish for guys in Santa suits while being a maternal figure for this young kid.

Brett Kelly is brilliant as this young kid named Thurman as someone that is constantly bullied while being fascinated by Soke as he sees someone that he can rely on. Tony Cox is great as Marcus as a midget with a fierce tongue as he is sort of the mastermind behind the thefts as he copes with Stokes’ growing incompetence and troubles where he finds himself doing a lot of the work. Finally, there’s Billy Bob Thornton in a phenomenal role as Willie T. Soke aka Bad Santa as this skilled but unhappy thief who drowns himself in self-loathing and alcohol as Thornton provides something that is very funny in its restraint and indifference but also some moments that are very somber as it relates to his yearning to find meaning in his life.

Bad Santa is a sensational film from Terry Zwigoff that features a winning and hilarious performance from Billy Bob Thornton in the leading role. Along with a great supporting cast and a witty premise, the film isn’t just an odd yet exhilarating dark comedy that is kind of the anti-Christmas film. It’s also a film that explores a man’s disdain towards society and helping this young kid stand out and not take shit from them. In the end, Bad Santa is an extraordinary film from Terry Zwigoff.

Terry Zwigoff Films: Louie Bluie - Crumb - Ghost World - Art School Confidential - The Auteurs #53: Terry Zwigoff

© thevoid99 2016

Hail, Caesar!

Written, edited, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, Hail, Caesar! is the story of a Hollywood fixer who tries to find a Hollywood film star who had disappeared during the production of a big Hollywood movie. The film is an exploration into 1950s American cinema as well as the world of gossip, scandals, and all sorts of shenanigans that went on in 1950s Hollywood as it is narrated by Michael Gambon. Starring George Clooney, Josh Brolin, Scarlett Johansson, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, Channing Tatum, Alden Ehrenreich, Jonah Hill, Alison Pill, and Ralph Fiennes. Hail, Caesar! is a witty and off-the-wall film from the Coen Brothers.

Set in 1950s Hollywood, the film revolves around a studio head whose job is to clean up people’s messes and make sure they’re protected by scandal where he copes with the recent disappearance of a major Hollywood star who had been abducted by a mysterious organization known as the Future. It’s a film that plays in the few days in the life of this fixer who makes sure that everything goes well as he deals with all sorts of things such as an un-wedded pregnant starlet, a cowboy film star going into costume dramas, and a job offer. The film’s screenplay by Joel and Ethan Coen doesn’t just explore the turbulent life of Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin) as he tries to juggle his life in work but also a family life which he is fond of despite the demands of his job. While the character of Eddie Mannix is a real-life figure who was a fixer in real-life, the situations that he encounters do play into some of the things that go on in Hollywood. Yet, what the Coen Brothers do is create some exaggerations as well as some shenanigans.

When the actor Baird Whitlock (George Clooney) gets abducted by this mysterious group, this is where the story really begins to take shape as the script also play into a world that is changing. Not just through the emergence of television and the new ideas of films that are coming but also what is happening underneath as it relates to a growing scare that would shape 1950s America. There lies this conflict of not just the world that Mannix wants to protect but also the emergence of a new world order that threatens it. Along the way, there are these characters who part of Mannix’s world that are have this public fact that people know and love but if anything about who they really are become known could be the end of them. Even as many of them might seem like these typical film stars but either they’re smarter than they actually are or are part of something bigger.

The Coen Brothers’ direction definitely owe a lot of the Golden Age of Hollywood in not just the type of films they’re presenting where many of the stars of Capitol Pictures are in. It’s also in the way the studio system was back then where they’re sort of disconnected from the real world as a way to escape from the harsh rigors of reality. Shot on location in Hollywood, the film does play like a Hollywood film that is a bit off-kilter yet manages to be very lively and full of energy. Especially in the soundstages where filmmakers and actors do their work and not worry about anything yet not everything is going great. Especially for the starlet DeeAnna Moray (Scarlett Johansson) who is coping with the early stages of pregnancy as she has trouble being in a mermaid outfit. It’s among the many quirks and bits of humor that the Coen Brothers put in as it showcases not just how silly the world of Hollywood is as it includes the kind of films that are made including a western where its lead actor Hobie Doyle (Alden Ehrenreich) finds himself cast in a costume drama.

Many of the compositions are simple in terms of wide and medium shots as well as some close-ups where some of it play into what kind of films are being made. The Coen Brothers also play with aspect ratios where many of the films that are being made are shot in the 1:33:1 Academy aspect ratio as the widescreen format wasn’t prominent until later in the 1950s due to the advent of television. The film would also play into an intimacy into this group that Whitlock was abducted by where it also has a sense of parody into who these guys are and what they represent. Some of which would set the tone for what would come in Hollywood but not to someone like Mannix who still believes that he is doing what is right no matter what forces are coming. Overall, the Coen Brothers create a very zany yet exhilarating film about a Hollywood fixer trying to clean up some big messes amidst an ever-changing world.

Cinematographer Roger Deakins does amazing work with the film‘s cinematography from the usage of grainy black-and-white film to recreate the costume drama to the array of lighting styles for the soundstages as well as some naturalistic exterior lighting for scenes in the day. Under the Roderick Jaynes alias, the Coen Brothers do some excellent work with the editing as it plays into the editing style of the times such as dissolves and some rhythmic cuts as well as some stylish cutting that would play into the suspense. Production designer Jess Gonchor, with set decorator Nancy Haigh and supervising art director Dawn Swiderski, does fantastic work with the different array of sets created for the many films in the soundstages as well as Mannix‘s office and the home of this mysterious group known as the Future.

Costume designer Mary Zophres does brilliant work with the costumes as it doesn’t just play into the period of the early 1950s from the many dresses the women wear but also some of the clothes of the men including Doyle’s cowboy get-up and the Roman period costume that Whitlock wears. Makeup artist Julie Hewett and hair designer Cydney Cornell do terrific work with the many different hairstyle of the characters that include the look of Moray as well as the look of the many women in the film including the twin gossip columnists Mannix has to deal with. Visual effects supervisors Dan Cregan, Dan Levitan, and Dan Schrecker do nice work with the visual effects for some of the set dressing for some of the exterior scenes as well as a few old-school tricks for sequences in some of the films that are being made. Sound editor Skip Lievsay and sound designer Craig Berkey do superb work with the sound from the way many of the recordings in an editing room or in a soundstage sound like to scenes outside the studio where it plays into the chaos that Mannix is dealing with. The film’s music by Carter Burwell is delightful for the many different array of music from bombastic orchestral music for the epics to country-western music for the cowboy movie or something more snazzy for the musicals as it includes original songs written with Henry Krieger and Willie Reale.

The casting by Ellen Chenoweth is phenomenal for the mass ensemble that is created in the film as it features notable small roles from Wayne Knight as a suspicious extra, E.E. Bell as a bartender in a musical number, Clancy Brown as Whitlock’s co-star, Robert Picardo as a concerned rabbi who frets over the epic movie, Alex Karpovsky as a photographer for the Future, Natasha Bassett as a starlet Mannix deals with early in the film, Christopher Lambert as a European filmmaker that is rumored to be the father of Moran’s baby, Emily Beecham as a young actress in a costume drama, Veronica Osorio as a Carmen Miranda-actress in Carlotta Valdez that Doyle is set up with for a date, and Heather Goldenhersh in a wonderful performance as Mannix’s secretary Natalie who is Mannix’s right-hand woman of sorts. In the roles of members of the Future, there are David Krumholtz, Fisher Stevens, Fred Melamed, and Patrick Fischer while John Bluthal is terrific as a philosopher who tries to convince Whitlock to join them. In the role of the Future’s leader, Max Baker is superb as the team’s leader as someone that wants to crush Capitol Studios as well as do something that would change America.

In small but very memorable roles, there’s Alison Pill in a radiant performance as Mannix’s wife who helps him decide what to do while Jonah Hill is fantastic as a man named Joseph Silverman that is willing to help out Mannix and Moran. Channing Tatum is excellent as Burt Gurney as a musical actor that is so full of charm in the way he sings and dances while also being a bit ambiguous as it relates to activities outside of acting. Frances McDormand is hilarious as the editor C.C. Calhoun as it’s a very funny one-scene appearance where McDormand helps Mannix over the fate of a film and what should be cut. Tilda Swinton is amazing in a dual role as twin gossip columnists Thora and Thessaly Thacker as two twin sisters who hate each other as they both try to get a story from Mannix over what is happening where one is trying to bring real news while the other wants to uncover scandal.

Ralph Fiennes is brilliant as filmmaker Laurence Larentz as this man who makes prestigious costume dramas who deals with having to work with the very inexperienced Doyle under the orders of the studio. Scarlett Johansson is great as DeeAnna Moran as this Esther Williams-type of actress who deals with being pregnant as well as being unmarried having already married twice where Johansson brings a lot of humor to her role. Alden Ehrenreich is incredible as Hobie Doyle as a singing cowboy actor who is a real cowboy as he deals with being put into a costume drama where he has trouble saying lines without his Western drawl as well as being a lot smarter than people want to believe. George Clooney is marvelous as Baird Whitlock as a leading man who gets abducted by a mysterious group where he realizes what is going on as he ponders whether to be part of this group where Clooney also gets to be funny. Finally, there’s Josh Brolin in a remarkable performance as Eddie Mannix as this fixer who tries to clean up all of the messes for a film studio while dealing with the chaos of his work where he also ponders about taking on another job as it’s Brolin in one of his best performances to date.

Hail, Caesar! is a phenomenal film from the Coen Brothers. Featuring a great ensemble cast, a witty premise, and some amazing technical work. The film isn’t just a lavish tribute to 1950s American cinema but also a hilarious take on that period that includes a funny view of the growing scare in America. In the end, Hail, Caesar! is a sensational film from the Coen Brothers.

Coen Brothers Films: Blood Simple - Raising Arizona - Miller's Crossing - Barton Fink - The Hudsucker Proxy - Fargo - The Big Lebowski - O Brother, Where Art Thou? - The Man Who Wasn't There - Intolerable Cruelty - The Ladykillers - Paris Je T'aime-Tulieres -To Each His Own Cinema-World Cinema - No Country for Old Men - Burn After Reading - A Serious Man - True Grit - Inside Llewyn Davis - The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

The Auteurs #9: The Coen Brothers: Part 1 - Part 2

© thevoid99 2016

Inside Llewyn Davis

Written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, Inside Llewyn Davis is the story in the week of a life of a struggling folk singer who is talented but also his own worst enemy as he deals with his own failures as well as his lack of success. The film is an exploration into the Greenwich folk music scene of the early 1960s where one man deals with his own gift and his faults as a person as the character is played by Oscar Isaac. Also starring Carey Mulligan, Justin Timberlake, Garrett Hedlund, F. Murray Abraham, and John Goodman. Inside Llewyn Davis is an extraordinary film from the Coen Brothers.

The film is essentially about a man who is undoubtedly talented but is a wandering fuck-up who manages to make a mess out of himself and the people he’s with. Notably as he is this musician who hasn’t been successful while still grieving over the death of his singing partner as he’s trying to make whatever money he can get and catch a break. Yet, Llewyn Davis is practically his own worst enemy as he is quite critical of others in the Greenwich folk music scene that is happening while he also learns that one of his fellow musicians in Jean (Carey Mulligan) is pregnant as he might be the father. It’s a film that takes place in the span of a week where it’s essentially a character study about this man trying to find his place in the world only to face all sorts of tribulation.

The film’s screenplay by the Coen Brothers takes it time to showcase the journey that Llewyn Davis takes in the span of an entire week where the first act is about Davis’ struggle in Greenwich where he crashes in various places while dealing with Jean’s news as her husband Jim (Justin Timberlake) asks him to do a session for a song Jim has made. While Llewyn has some respect for Jim, there is some jealousy over the fact that Jim is successful despite the fact that he doesn’t have Llewyn’s gifts as a real artist. After meeting another folk musician that Jim and Jean had befriend in Troy (Stark Sands), the film would have this second act of Llewyn traveling to Chicago with a stray cat he had found. The cat that Llewyn encounters is a symbol of what Llewyn could do if he doesn’t screw up yet there’s a side of him that is definitely full of fear where Llewyn isn’t sure if he can take care of a cat let alone a child since Jean could be carrying his child.

The film’s second act also has Llewyn encountering a strange music impresario named Roland Turner (John Goodman) and his valet Johnny Five (Garrett Hedlund) who accompany him to Chicago for this audition with a renowned manager named Bud Grossman (F. Murray Abraham). The trip itself would be strange where it would add to Llewyn’s own doubts about himself where he would eventually arrive into Chicago with a lot of emotional baggage that he’s gained in the past few days. The third act would be about his return to New York City where it would play into the aftermath of his Chicago trip and the uncertainty of what to do next as it plays into Llewyn’s own fallacies as a man and as a musician.

The direction of the Coen Brothers is truly exquisite in not just the way they recreate the 1960s Greenwich folk music scene but also set it around a man who feels more and more out of place with the scene he was once a part of. Much of the direction have the Coens use a lot of wide and medium shots where it’s largely shot in New York City to play into a world that is constantly changing and thriving. There’s some close-ups and very interesting moments that the Coens create such as a scene of Llewyn trying to catch this stray cat called Ulysses whose owners are these music aficionados who often invite him to crash at their place. Yet, the scenes involving the cat as well as the opening sequence of Llewyn playing at this smoky, dimly-lit venue where it showcases where he’s coming from and the emotional baggage that he’s carrying.

The film does also become a road film of sorts in the second act where the images of the car driving on the road are quite entrancing as it showcases that uncertainty of Llewyn as he’s a man with no home or no direction home. The film in some ways is a folk song being played on screen as the Coens also shoot a few scenes in Chicago where it’s cold and Llewyn faces one bad situation after another before his audition. The compositions become much more stark in not just its imagery but also in the way it explores Llewyn’s own faults and the uncertainty he faces. Overall, the Coen Brothers create a very fascinating and engaging film about a man’s faults and the uncertainty that he carries about who he is and what he does.

Cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel does brilliant work with the film‘s very lush and colorful cinematography that is filled with exotic colors for some of the film‘s interior scenes that includes the small venue that Llewyn and other folk musicians play at as well as the richness for some of the film‘s daytime and nighttime exterior scenes. Under the Roderick Jaynes alias, the Coen Brothers do excellent work in the editing where they use a lot of stylish cuts from its fade-outs and transitions to play into the drama that unfolds throughout the film. Production designer Jess Gonchor, along with set decorator Susan Bode Tyson and art director Deborah Jensen, does amazing work with the set pieces from the look of the folk venue that the characters play at to the very thin hallways in the apartments the characters live in.

Costume designer Mary Zophres does fantastic work with the costumes as it is largely based on the clothes of the early 60s from the flamboyant look of Roland Turner to the straight-laced clothes that Jean and Jim wear. Visual effects supervisor Alex Lemke does terrific work with some of the minimal visual effects created such as the scenes of snow appearing on the nighttime road scenes. Sound editor Skip Lievsay does superb work with the film‘s sound from the atmosphere of the folk clubs as well as some of the calmer moments of the scenes on the road. Music archivist T-Bone Burnett does an outstanding work in compiling the film’s soundtrack as many of the actors in the film do their own singing as the songs chosen for the film do help tell the story. Notably as the music features contributions from Marcus Mumford and Chris Elridge in many of the songs played which also includes a rarity from Bob Dylan.

The casting by Ellen Chenoweth is great for the ensemble that is created as it includes some notable appearances from Adam Driver as a folk musician who aids Llewyn in a session for Jim, Jeanine Serralles as Llewyn’s older sister Joy, Max Casella as a folk club owner, Ethan Phillips and Robin Barlett as the music aficionados who let Llewyn crash at their place as they’re also Ulysses’ owner, Alex Karpovsky and Helen Hong as party guests that Llewyn meets at the aficionados’ home, Stark Sands as Jim and Jean’s friend Troy who is a good musician that Llewyn is annoyed by, and F. Murray Abraham in an excellent performance as the revered talent manager Bud Grossman who watches Llewyn plays as he decides his fate. Garrett Hedlund is terrific as Turner’s valet Johnny Five as he is very quiet throughout the film but there is something about him that adds to the strangeness of Llewyn’s encounter with Turner.

John Goodman is fantastic as the eccentric and flamboyant music impresario Roland Turner as a man who walks with two canes while musing on all sorts of things as his presence would leave Llewyn even more troubled. Justin Timberlake is amazing as Jim Berkey as this very talented and successful folk musician who is an all-around nice that just wants to help Llewyn out any way he can. Carey Mulligan is brilliant as Jean Berkey as a folk singer who despises Llewyn as she also tries to help while telling him that she’s pregnant with what might be their child which she has a hard time dealing with. Finally, there’s Oscar Isaac in an incredible performance as the titular character who is talented but unable to take his talents forward as he carries a lot of emotional baggage and a cat. It’s a performance that is eerie to watch where there’s aspects about him which are endearing but he’s also a guy that continuously fucks up every chance he has giving Isaac a career-defining performance.

Inside Llewyn Davis is a remarkable film from Joel and Ethan Coen that features a marvelous performance from Oscar Isaac. The film is not just an intriguing look into the failures and faults of a man but also the 1960s folk music scene in which he was a part of and how he feels out of place in that world. Especially where it’s a film that showcases what a struggling musician has to go through to make it in an ever-changing world. In the end, Inside Llewyn Davis is a phenomenal film from the Coen Brothers.

Coen Brothers Films: Blood Simple - Raising Arizona - Miller's Crossing - Barton Fink - The Hudsucker Proxy - Fargo - The Big Lebowski - O Brother, Where Art Thou? - The Man Who Wasn't There - Intolerable Cruelty - The Ladykillers - Paris Je T'aime-Tulieres -To Each His Own Cinema-World Cinema - No Country for Old Men - Burn After Reading - A Serious Man - True Grit - Hail, Caesar! - The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

The Auteurs #9: The Coen Brothers: Part 1 - Part 2

© thevoid99 2013

The Auteurs #9: Joel & Ethan Coen Pt. 2

Part 2

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

The cult success of The Big Lebowski allowed the Coen Brother to take more chance on what they wanted to do next. During the production of The Big Lebowski, the Coen Brothers were developing a project that would be an adaptation of Homer’s The Odyssey. Setting it during the Great Depression in Mississippi, the Coen Brothers would take Homer’s story of mysticism and redemption based on a long journey and infuse it with their own brand of humor.

Entitled O Brother, Where Art Thou?, the Coen Brothers would aim for a film that was quirky but also rooted in mythology as its lead character Ulysses Everett McGill would be the center of the story as part of an unofficial trilogy the Coen Brothers created called the Numskull trilogy as each film would star George Clooney in the lead role. With Clooney on board as McGill, the cast included Coen Brother regulars John Turturro, John Goodman, Charles Durning, Michael Badalucco, and Holly Hunter along with Tim Blake Nelson, Stephen Root, Daniel von Bargen, Ray McKinnon, Wayne Duvall, Chris Thomas King, and Lee Weaver.

Shot in Mississippi and South Carolina, the Coen Brothers and cinematographer Roger Deakins aimed for a look that was rich as Deakins chose to go for a sepia-tinted look to maintain that gritty yet evocative look of the Great Depression. With the help of various collaborators including production designer Dennis Gassner, set decorator Nancy Haigh, and costume designer Mary Zophes helping to re-create the look of that period. The Coen Brothers wanted to maintain an authenticity to that period as they also brought back T-Bone Burnett to help with the film’s music as he also collaborated with Carter Burwell.

With the film’s music soundtrack helping out to tell the story as it included many traditional pieces of the times. It allowed the film to be more than just a period re-telling of The Odyssey as it included lots of humor and musical performances. The approach to genre-bending allowed the Coen Brothers to make a film that would appeal to an audience that loves these different types of genre. Notably as it included George Clooney in a role that allowed him to be very funny and be able to take some humility in his character.

The film premiered at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival to a great reception as it was finally released in theaters in December of 2000 to become a critical and commercial hit. The film’s soundtrack was also released as it became a true major hit winning the Grammy for Album of the Year at the 2002 ceremonies. The popularity of the film’s soundtrack helped the film maintain its popularity as it continued the Coen Brothers winning streak with films that were popular with critics and audiences.

The Man Who Wasn't There

Deciding to take another left turn after the success of O Brother, Where Art Thou?, the Coen Brothers decided to return to the dark noir of Blood Simple by going into a different period piece about blackmail, infidelity, and guilt that was eventually called The Man Who Wasn’t There. The film followed a laconic barber who learns about his wife’s infidelity with her department store boss as he tries to blackmail him in order to invest a new invention known as dry cleaning. Instead, things go wrong as the wife is accused of murder as the man deals with the guilt of everything that has happened as he deals with various strange things around him.

Set in the post-war 1940s, the Coen Brothers aimed to go for a film that was reminiscent of the noir films of the 1940s as they also chose to shoot the film in black-and-white. With Roger Deakins helping to provide a look that was very similar to the films of those times, it added to the dark tone of the film while a few quirks were added to play to troubled state of mind of its protagonist Ed Crane. Notably as it also included voice-over narration to maintain Ed Crane’s reflection of everything he’s done and what kind of man he is as just states, “me, I don’t talk much. I just cut the hair.”

Playing the role of Ed Crane is Billy Bob Thornton as he would be joined by Coen regulars Frances McDormand as his wife Doris, Jon Polito as a shady salesman, Michael Badalucco as Ed’s talkative brother-in-law, and Tony Shalhoub as the vivacious attorney Freddy Riedenschneider. The cast also included James Gandolfini as Doris’ lover Big Dave, Richard Jenkins, Christopher McDonald, and Scarlett Johansson along with John Turturro’s wife Katherine Borowitz as Dave’s wife Ann Nirdlinger and a cameo from Jennifer Jason Leigh as a fellow prisoner.

Maintaining that sense of drama that occurs in noir films, the Coens chose to play things straight while the quirks involving Ann Nirdlinger’s belief in UFOs play up to the heightened sense of paranoia as it would later trouble Ed Crane. With a lot of compositions playing up to the style of the times, the film also included a strange fantasy scene late in the film that features Christopher McDonald. The film emphasizes the Coens at their most restraint while the music soundtrack largely consists of piano sonatas from Ludwig Van Beethoven as it serves as a piece of serenity for Ed Crane that is performed by Scarlett Johansson’s Birdy Abundas’ character whom Ed tries to find redemption in only to find out she isn’t exactly who she seems to be. This would to more of Ed’s troubles and sense of guilt as he would face the inevitable for all that’s happened.

The film premiered at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival where Joel Coen won the festival’s Best Director prize that he shared with David Lynch for his film Mulholland Dr. The film came out to American theaters later in November to excellent reviews though the box office was modest. While it would yield another Oscar nomination for Roger Deakins in the cinematography category, the film would often be considered to be one of the Coen Brothers’ more overlooked films as its reputation would later grow in the coming years.

Intolerable Cruelty

When plans for an adaptation James Dickey‘s novel To the White Sea failed to get into the pre-production stages, the Coen Brothers teamed up with producer Brian Grazer for a more mainstream project. Known for producing many hit films including a profitable collaboration with Ron Howard, Grazer would be the man who the Coen Brothers hoped would give them a big commercial hit. For this collaboration, Grazer gave the Coen Brothers a script that would fit in with the themes of the Numskull trilogy that was entitled Intolerable Cruelty. The film is about a divorce attorney who meets his match in a gold-digger.

The Coens would re-write the script to fit in with their own sensibilities as they reunited with George Clooney for the film as he plays the role of Miles Massey. With regulars Richard Jenkins and Billy Bob Thornton making appearances along with a cameo from Bruce Campbell, the cast also included Catherine Zeta-Jones as the gold-digger Marylin along with Edward Herrmann, Cedric the Entertainer, and Geoffrey Rush for a quirky romantic-comedy.

With locations set in Los Angeles as well as Las Vegas, the Coen Brothers aimed to create a more sunny yet lavish look to explore the world of the rich and its divorce attorneys. While the duo infused a lot of their quirky humor into some of the characters and situations they created. The Coen Brothers also aimed for a more straightforward approach to the comedy in order to appeal to a wide audience. Notably as they wanted to focus on the attraction between Massey and Marylin which would appeal to female moviegoers as the chemistry between Clooney and Zeta-Jones in their respective roles proved to be a winning formula.

Released in October of 2003, the film did score very good reviews while its box office take gave them another major commercial hit. While the film is largely considered to be one of the Coen Brothers’ weakest films in terms of its lack of unconventional ideas. In comparison to a lot of the romantic comedies that Hollywood has put out, it is a cut above a lot of those films which often deviate too much to that formula. Particularly as the Coen Brothers manage to inject more humor than what is expected in the genre.

The Ladykillers (2004 film)

The Coen Brothers’ next project would have the duo reunite with old cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld but in the role of a producer. Originally meant to be a project helmed by Sonnenfeld, the remake of the 1955 Ealing black comedy The Ladykillers would be taken over by the Coen Brothers as it would be the first project to official have both of them credited as producers and directors.

Wanting to update the revered 1955 film for a new audience, the Coen Brothers chose to set the film in the American South of the present as they brought in T-Bone Burnett to assemble a soundtrack filled with blues and gospel along with bits of hip-hop to appeal to a younger audience. For the casting, the film would include appearances from associates like Bruce Campbell and Stephen Root while it would be lead by Tom Hanks in the role that was played famously by Alec Guinness. Along with J.K. Simmons, Marlon Wayans, Tzi Ma, and Ryan Hurst as the gang Hanks leads for the heist, veteran actress Irma P. Hall plays the old lady who would become a liability in the heist they plan as they would try to kill her.

With some of the location shot in Mississippi, the Coen Brothers wanted to capture the world of the American South as well as its gospel community. While wanting to pay tribute to the original 1955 film that was directed by Alexander Mackendrick. The duo added a few quirks as well as recreate the infamous body-dropping scenes in tribute to the original film. Yet, they wanted to create a film that would appeal to a wider audience by infusing hip-hop and lots of profane dialogue often spoken by Marlon Wayans’ character. While the overall result is a pretty entertaining film, it’s also a messy one due to the Coen Brothers to make something that was very faithful but also commercial.

The film was released in March of 2004 in the U.S. to mixed reviews though it was a hit in the box office. While it would also play at the Cannes Film Festival later that spring where Irma P. Hall won the festival’s Special Jury Prize. Many stated that the film is the weakest film the Coen Brothers have released. Particularly with longtime fans of the duo who felt the Coen Brothers were trying too hard to win over a wider audience. Despite its box office success, the Coen Brothers would take a break after its release as they would ponder what to do next.

Tuileries/World Cinema

In between the feature film projects the Coen Brothers were doing in the aftermath of The Ladykillers, the two decided to create two different short films for anthology film projects. The first would be for a 2006 anthology film called Paris Je T’aime which invited many of the world’s best filmmakers to each make a short film set in a location in Paris that revolves around love. For their segment entitled Tuileres, the Coen Brothers decide to short at the Tuileries metro train station as it features longtime Coen Brother regular Steve Buscemi.

The short involves Buscemi playing a tourist as he waits in the station where he breaks a cardinal rule when he makes eye contact on a young couple kissing. The short features a lot of humorous moments as the couple fights while a young woman would end up making out with Buscemi’s character. The anthology film premiered at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival as it was among one of its standout pieces proving that the Coen Brothers could still pull off the funny moments.

Another anthology film the Coen Brothers would be involved in was a special project for the 60th anniversary of the Cannes Film Festival that was called Chacun son Cinema (To Each His Own Cinema) as many of the world’s great filmmakers were invited to make 3-minute segments expressing their love for cinema. The Coen Brothers were among the many filmmakers invited for the project as they created a short that would star actors Grant Heslov and Josh Brolin, the latter whom was already working with the Coens for their 2007 film No Country for Old Men.

The short entitled World Cinema involved Brolin’s cowboy character walking around a small Texas town to a theater showing art films as he chats with Grant Heslov’s usher character about what movie to see. Heslov would suggest Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Climates over Jean Renoir’s Rules of the Game for the cowboy to see. The aftermath would bring a very surprising revelation as the Coen Brothers revealed the power of cinema when one goes to a film not knowing what to expect. Though the short was not featured in the anthology film’s DVD releases, it would become available on the Internet as it is considered to be one of the Coen Brothers’ finest films.

No Country for Old Men

In need to boost their reputation following the dismal reaction to The Ladykillers and finding time to get their creative juices going through the two shorts they made. The Coen Brothers decided to go back to darker territory as they read Cormac McCarthy’s 2005 novel No Country for Old Men as they decided to develop it for their next project. McCarthy’s tale of nihilism set in 1980 Texas about a hitman who goes after a man who had stolen money while a sheriff is on the trail. Since the story fits in with the Coen Brothers’ exploration of dark violence of films like Blood Simple and Fargo. The Coens got the chance to helm the project with producer Scott Rudin who would help develop the project with the Coen Brothers.

With the exception of Stephen Root as the man who hires hitmen, the film wouldn’t feature any Coen Brothers regulars as the duo decided to start anew with the casting. For the role of the laconic sheriff Ed Tom Bell, Tommy Lee Jones was cast while Spanish actor Javier Bardem was cast in the role of the villainous hitman Anton Chigurh. For the role of the thief Llewelyn Moss, Josh Brolin was cast after several auditions. The first of which was an audition tape directed by Quentin Tarantino and shot by filmmaker Robert Rodriguez during the production of the Tarantino-Rodriguez collaboration Grindhouse. Along with Kelly MacDonald, Woody Harrelson, Barry Corbin, Tess Harper, and Garrett Dillahunt to play big parts for the film.

The Coen Brothers also added new collaborators as Jess Gonchor was hired to be the new production designer while sound designer Craig Berkey joined the team to aid Skip Lievsay in the sound department. Shooting on location in New Mexico and Texas, the Coen Brothers aimed to create a film that was reminiscent of the western as they cite Sam Peckinpah as an influence for the film. Wanting to maintain a suspenseful mood of the film, the Coen Brothers asked Lievsay, Berkey, and music composer Carter Burwell to help create sound textures for the film instead of going for a traditional score often displayed in suspense films.

While the Coens chose to remain faithful to McCarthy’s novel, it allowed the duo to interpret McCarthy’s novel without doing too much as they wanted to keep thing separate from the book. While the film is a study on violence, the Coens allowed the violence to be more gruesome than in previous films while playing with the theme of changing times. Notably in Jones’ Bell character who is a man seemingly lost in this world as it had become more violent. Since the film had none of the quirks the Coen Brothers had done in previous films, they made a film that was more entrancing in its approach to violence and crime.

The film premiered at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival where it received great acclaim as it garnered a theatrical release in the fall of that year. The film would prove to be the Coen Brothers biggest hit since Fargo as they would also receive numerous accolades. Notably eight Academy Award nominations where they would win four big prizes. Among them was a Best Supporting Oscar to Javier Bardem plus adapted screenplay and directing honors to the Coen Brothers as well as the coveted Best Picture prize. The massive critical and commercial success of the film had finally put the Coen Brothers on top of the film world as it would increase their stature with the film world.

Burn After Reading

Wanting to take another left turn from the nihilistic No Country for Old Men, the Coen Brothers decided to return to the world of comedy. This time around, it would revolve around an embittered CIA analyst whose life is falling apart when two gym employees obtain his CD files in hopes to blackmail him. Entitled Burn After Reading, the film would have the Coen Brothers go back to zany comedies revolving around idiocy and devious schemes.

With a cast that would regulars Frances McDormand, George Clooney, J.K. Simmons, and Richard Jenkins along with Tilda Swinton, David Rasche, and Brad Pitt. The film would have the Coen Brothers explore the world of blackmail, paranoia, misunderstanding, and selfish opportunities that have people do stupid things. While some feel that this film is the third part of the Numskull trilogy, it is often disputed for two reasons. One is that there is no true lead character as George Clooney’s Harry Pfarrer character isn’t a nitwit but a paranoid US marshal who is juggling various affairs. The second reason is that the idiot in the film is played Brad Pitt whose Chad character is a dim-witted personal trainer with bad hair and always moves around to music.

While the film was set in Washington D.C., the Coen Brothers chose to shoot the film largely in Brooklyn Heights so they can stay close to home. With regular cinematographer Roger Deakins unable to shoot the film due to various projects, including consultant work for the 2008 Pixar animated film WALL-E, renowned Mexican cinematographer Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki was hired to shoot the film. Wanting to maintain lots of quirk and suspense, the film was intended to be off-the-wall while the characters that J.K. Simmons and David Rasche play would comment on all of the shenanigans that went on in a few scenes during the film.

The film premiered at the 2008 Venice Film Festival in September of that year as it was later followed by a wide theatrical release in the U.S. Despite being a commercial hit and garnering good reviews, the film also received some lukewarm reaction from some fans and critics who felt that the humor was forced and a lot of the characters were too cartoonish. Still, the film continued to raise the Coen Brothers’ profile as hit-makers who can get people into the theaters no matter what kind of film they’re making.

A Serious Man

With back-to-back commercially successful films, the Coen Brothers decided to go back to their roots to Minnesota by exploring their life as children. Along with delving into their Jewish background and life back in the 1960s, the Coen Brothers decided to tell a modern story of Job set in that time period entitled A Serious Man. In version of Job, the film focuses on a physics professor whose life unravels when his wife leaves him for another man while his job is being threatened by a student as well other things leading him to question his fate.

Shooting on location in small towns in Minnesota near their hometown, the Coen Brothers and their collaborators chose to certain place that retained a look of the late 1960s while shooting in actual synagogues for some key scenes in the film. With production designer Jess Gonchor and set decorator Nancy Haigh helping to recreate the homes and furniture of that period while Mary Zophres chose specific clothes for the characters to wear. Shot in the summer, the Coens wanted to maintain that Summer of Love vibe that was happening as Roger Deakins chose different lighting schemes to maintain that free-flowing look for the film.

With Ellen Chenoweth assembling the cast for the film, her job was to look for various unknowns or actors who hadn’t had much exposure. While associates like Steve Park, Michael Lerner, and Katherine Borowitz made small appearances, the rest of the cast were filled with lesser-known actors with the exception of George Wyner, Richard Kind, Adam Arkin, and Fred Melamed in supporting roles while Fyvush Finkel makes an appearance in the film’s opening prologue scene set in the early 20th Century. For the lead role of Larry Gopnick, Michael Stuhlbarg was cast as the role would be the breakthrough of his career. Many of the casting was for the Coens to recreate the world of a Jewish community in Minnesota as it would allow them to explore bigger themes in the film.

Among them was faith as Larry Gopnick would delve into different crises in his encounter with two different rabbis where each would tell strange stories that would further Larry’s confusion. Even as he faces some tragedy where he is losing everything just like Job furthering his own emotional and mental anguish. While the film is largely a dark comedy filled with a lot of questions on existentialism and faith, the humor often revolves around the Jewish faith as well as many references to the music of Jefferson Airplane as the song Somebody to Love is played early in the film. Most notably in a scene where Larry’s stoned son meets with an elder rabbi who then recites the lyrics of that songs as well as naming the members of that band in a very comical yet understated scene.

The film premiered at the 2009 Toronto Film Festival to a great reception while it got a limited theatrical release in late October. The film would become a modest box office hit while yielding two Oscar nominations for Best Original Screenplay and Best Picture. The surprising critical reception helped the film reach into several top ten critics polls and other accolades furthering the Coen Brothers status as one of the world’s best filmmakers working today.

True Grit

For their second collaboration with No Country for Old Men producer Scott Rudin, the Coen Brothers was asked to be involved in another adaptation. This time around, it would be in the form of a book that had already been made into a film in True Grit. The 1969 film directed Henry Hathaway was considered to be one of the finest westerns of the genre as it would win its star John Wayne an Academy Award for Best Actor. While the Coen Brothers enjoyed the famed Hathaway film, they decided to go on a different approach to the story by basing it on Charles Portis’ actual novel.

Instead of focusing on the Rooster Cogburn character that Wayne had made famous, the Coens chose to focus on the Mattie Ross character who hires Cogburn to go after the man who had killed her father. In this approach to the narrative, the Coen Brothers found something appealed to their humorous sensibilities as well as their love for well-intended yet flawed characters. Most notably, the project would finally give the Coen Brothers a chance to tackle the western genre head-on without going into the heroic idealism of John Wayne.

For the role of Rooster Cogburn, Jeff Bridges was selected to play the iconic role while Matt Damon was cast as Texas Ranger LaBoeuf and Josh Brolin as the villainous Tom Chaney. The casting for Mattie Ross was very specific as the Coen Brothers and Ellen Chenoweth wanted someone who was the same age as Ross as it went to 13-year old Hailee Steinfeld. Along with appearances from previous Coen Brothers players such as Leon Russom, Elizabeth Marvel, and J.K. Simmons in a voice cameo, the cast included Barry Pepper as the villainous “Lucky” Ned Pepper.

Wanting to create a look and feeling that was different from the Hathaway film, cinematographer Roger Deakins aimed for different looks to complement a style that was true to the Western genre. Notably as the Coen Brothers wanted to create something that was authentic as a tribute to the genre while adding a few of their own quirks into the film. Notably as it includes scenes where Cogburn and Ross encounter a strange man wearing all sorts of fur and a scene where Cogburn and LaBoeuf try to see who can shoot objects up in the air without missing. Yet, the Coen Brothers wanted to maintain a sense of adventure and suspense that occurs in the film while giving the audience a whole lot more of what is expected for the western genre.

The film premiered in late December of 2010 to rave reviews and also becoming a surprising hit in the box office. Notably as it was the tent pole Christmas film of the year that gave audiences a lot to root for. The film would garner ten Oscar nominations including Best Picture though it would get shut out at the ceremonies. Yet, the film did help maintain the Coen Brothers winning streak.

Inside Llewyn Davis

For their upcoming film entitled Inside Llewyn Davis, the Coen Brothers decided to return to the world of music as they had done previous in O Brother, Where Art Thou? and the 2004 remake of The Ladykillers. This time around, it would be on the early 1960s folk music scene in New York City revolving around a young singer-songwriter. While the film is to be inspired by Dave Van Ronk’s memoir The Mayor of MacDougall Street, it is likely that it won’t be some conventional film about a music scene as nothing the Coen Brothers do is safe.

The film will reunite the Coen Brothers with actor John Goodman while its cast mostly revolves around young actors such as Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, Garrett Hedlund, and Justin Timberlake. The film will also be the second time Roger Deakins won’t be shooting the film due to his involvement to shooting Sam Mendes’ James Bond film Skyfall. French cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel will fill in for Deakins as the film is set for a late 2012/early 2013 release.

With fifteen films and another one on the way, there’s no doubt that Joel & Ethan Coen have created a library of films that anyone can enjoy. Notably as it ranges into various genres and themes that the Coen Brothers have often revisited and find some way to say something new about it. They have made enough films and have created enough characters and moments where someone can point to a scene and say it’s a Coen Brothers film. Whether it features a screaming John Goodman, a pregnant cop, a guy named the Dude, an idiotic George Clooney, a quiet barber, a guy from Indiana doing a school fight song, Brad Pitt as a dancing personal trainer, a talkative Steve Buscemi, or anything else that is absurd. You can always count on Joel and Ethan Coen to deliver all of that and more.

Pt. 1

© thevoid99 2012

The Auteurs #9: Joel & Ethan Coen Pt. 1

Part 1

Considered to be one of the great filmmaking duos/siblings working today in cinema, Joel and Ethan Coen have amassed a spectacular library of films that is as diverse and prolific. From zany, low-brow comedies to stylish, noir-style crime films, the Coen Brothers are filmmakers who definitely have no boundaries in what they do. Even if it involves character who are truly out of the norm and are from very different worlds as they try to fit in or make sense of what is happening around them. While they would often use the same actors and work with the same people, they’re a duo that doesn’t repeat their work or to try and gravitate towards the trends of the time.

Born from the state of St. Louis Park, Minnesota, Joel David Coen arrived on November 29, 1954 while Ethan Jesse Coen arrived on September 21, 1957 as both were raised by their Jewish parents in their economist father Edward and art historian mother Rena. The two both attended the St. Louis Park High School as Joel graduated in 1973 and Ethan three years later as both went to different schools as Joel went to New York University and Ethan going to Princeton.

The brothers both shared a love for film and pulp novels as Joel would meet another young filmmaker whose career was starting out in Sam Raimi. Joel’s talent in editing had Raimi hired him to co-edit his 1981 debut in the horror flick The Evil Dead as the two became friends as they also brought in Ethan as the trio would write a script for Raimi’s second film that would be the 1985 black comedy Crimewave.

Blood Simple

Inspired by the writings of Dashiell Hammett, Joel and Ethan Coen wrote a project that was inspired by Hammett’s work and their love for film noir and horror. Entitled Blood Simple, the film told the story of a bar owner who hires private detective to kill his wife and her lover in Texas. The film’s plot is synonymous in what is expected with film noir but the Coen Brothers knew they had to do things to make it different. Notably as it was the 1980s and film noir had sort of returned in films like Lawrence Kasdan’s 1981 debut film Body Heat.

With the help of their cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld, the Coen Brothers would create moody shots to emphasize the sense of dread that occurs while utilizing bits of humor into the film. Notably as it involves a bartender who always plays the Four Tops’ Same Old Song to quiet things down. Another element of the film that strayed from a lot of the ideas of film noir are the characters as Dan Hedaya’s Julian Marty is not some angry husband who wants his wife dead while Frances McDormand’s Abby character isn’t a typical straying wife. Added to this toxic mix of adultery and revenge is the Loren Visser character played by M. Emmett Walsh who would be the man that would play his own rules and set the fates for everyone involved.

This approach to the noir narrative gave the Coen Brothers a chance to stand out on their own in the way by letting the characters be more fleshed out but also create scenes where it’s all about the dialogue and planning. The scene where John Getz’s Ray character tries to bury Marty’s body after finding him dead as he is lost in the desert is among one of the most chilling moments in the film. Notably as he tries to play against what Visser is trying to do making things much more complicated. These would be the kind of elements that Joel and Ethan Coen would later use to help find a certain genre formula and re-tool it in order to find something new.

While the Coen Brothers also co-edited the film under a pseudonym in Roderick Jaynes whom they would use for almost the entirety of their career. The film would also feature key people who would be part of the Coen Brothers’ extended family. Among them was Joel Coen’s then-girlfriend Frances McDormand in whom he would be married to as she would become one of the Coen Brothers key acting regulars. With cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld part of the team of regular collaborators at the time. Two other individuals would become key players into the film work of the Coen Brothers for the entirety of their film career. The first was sound editor Skip Lievsay who would help set the mood for a lot of the sound used in their films. The other is music composer Carter Burwell who helped provided a dark, melancholic score with eerie piano textures needed for the film.

The film made its premiere at the 1984 Toronto Film Festival and later making its U.S. debut a month later at the New York Film Festival. The film would be a major festival hit as well as one of the key touchstone pictures to help set the burgeoning new wave of American filmmakers emerging outside of the studio system. Though Joel Coen was credited as the director and Ethan as the producer due to guild rules at the time. The film would mark their arrival while in 2000 after years of being out-of-print and not being shown on TV for some time. The duo re-released the film in a director’s cut by restoring the Four Tops song, which had been replaced by the Monkees on U.S. home video due to music rights reasons, as well as re-cutting a few scenes adding to the film’s lauded reputation.

In 2009, Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou remade Blood Simple into a stylish period piece entitled A Simple Noodle Story that was more of a comedy than the dark thrillers of the original Coen Brothers film. While the film did received mixed reviews from audiences and critics, the Coen Brothers did praise Yimou’s version of their film adding to the revered reputation of Blood Simple.

Raising Arizona

With Blood Simple being an art house and film festival hit that garnered numerous critical acclaim, the Coen Brothers were becoming new filmmakers on the rise. In 1985, comedy director John Landis asked Joel Coen and Sam Raimi to make cameo appearances for his film Spies Like Us while Joel and Ethan Coen both helped Raimi making Raimi’s Crimewave released in 1985. It was during this time the Coen Brothers were trying to start work on a new project that was to be extremely different from Blood Simple. Inspired by the works of filmmaker Preston Sturges and the writing of William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor for the film Raising Arizona.

The film is about an ex-convict loser and his former-cop wife whose attempt to have a child is shattered as the two learn about a set of quintuplets born whose father is an unpainted furniture entrepreneur. The two kidnap a baby to raise on their own as they later deal with two ex-convicts, responsibility, and a biker from hell. Unlike Blood Simple, the film would become a trademark of the Coen Brothers’ idiosyncratic and zany approach to comedy that would broaden their fan base for years to come.

With appearances from Frances McDormand and M. Emmet Walsh, the film starred Nicolas Cage as ex-convict H.I. McDunnough and McDormand’s college roommate Holly Hunter, who made a voice cameo in Blood Simple, as H.I.’s ex-cop wife Ed. The cast also included Randall “Tex” Cobb as the biker from hell Leonard Smalls, Trey Wilson, William Forsythe, and a future Coen Brothers regular in John Goodman as one of the two ex-convict friends of H.I. The casting would allow the Coen Brothers to create cartoonish characters who play to certain types while being more fleshed out as the film progresses. While the character of H.I. is a man struggling to be good and leave his criminal past behind. He feels pushed to live up to certain expectations that he can’t meet when his convict friends later try to get him to take part in a bank robbery.

The Snoat brothers that John Goodman and William Forsythe played are two guys who are a bit dim-witted but can be very smart when it comes to crime while they also seem to be very fond of the Arizona baby that H.I. and Ed kidnapped. Some of the key elements of the Coens humors included John Goodman screaming either in shock or in rage. Notably in the scene where he and Forsythe dug themselves out of jail. Another key element to the Coen Brothers’ approach to comedy is the quirky dialogue that is created. One famous line that Cage speaks is him trying to rob a convenience store as he tells the clerk, “I’ll be taking these Huggies and whatever cash you got” only for the robbery to go wrong leading to a hilarious chase involving dogs, cops, and a run-in at people’s houses and a supermarket.

While the film’s production had some difficulty due to the casting of the babies needed for the film along with issues with Nicolas Cage and Randall “Tex” Cobb though Cage later expressed his admiration for the duo. The film was released in early 1987 in the U.S. to mixed reviews as it would later win over audiences through the advent of home video and cable. The film also got a chance to screen out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1987 giving the Coen Brothers their first taste of major international exposure. The film would eventually considered as one of the great comedies ever made when the AFI listed at 31 for their 100 Years… 100 Laughs list in 2000.

Miller's Crossing

The cult success of Raising Arizona allowed the Coen Brothers time to work on their next project as they decide to go into the gangster-crime genre. Originally entitled The Bighead, it was to be a film that was once again inspired by the works of Dashiell Hammett about a gangster trying to play both sides in the middle of a gang war. Writing the project proved to be difficult for the Coen Brothers as the duo suffered writer’s block in trying to create the script that would become Miller’s Crossing.

During the time of writing the screenplay, the Coen Brothers would eventually create another script that would become another film entitled Barton Fink which they eventually wrote in three weeks. After finally completing the script for Miller’s Crossing, the duo finally went to work on the project set to shoot in New Orleans as the film was set during the American Prohibition era. With Irish actor Gabriel Byrne set to play the lead role of Tom Reagan, the cast included Albert Finney playing the role of crime boss Leo O’Bannon who took over for Trey Wilson who died two days before production was to start.

Also cast were Marcia Gay Harden, J.E. Freeman, and many other actors who would become Coen Brothers regulars as it featured John Turturro, Steve Buscemi, Jon Polito, and Michael Badalucco along with appearances from Frances McDormand and Sam Raimi. With less emphasis on crazy shooting styles, the Coen Brothers aim for something that is much simpler but also more direct in their compositions. While the violence is more brutal than in Blood Simple, there is still an element of style present in the film. Notably as one of the film’s most memorable moments includes a scene where a hit on Leo O’Bannon fails as he grabs a tommy gun and kills his rival’s henchmen as they try to flee in their car and blows up.

Another moment of the film’s rise in maturity is in the way the Coens were able to direct actors and framing them for a shot. While there was still elements of humor, there is a bit of a restraint to the way the Coen Brothers play up the drama such as Tom’s conversation with John Turturro’s Bernie character as the latter is in hiding after Tom secretly spared Bernie from death. That scene would be recreated in towards the end of the film as Bernie makes the same plea to Tom as it would reveal Tom’s true character. It’s a film that would prove the Coen Brothers’ ability to not play nice when it comes to violence while creating ambiguity in its characters.

Released on September 1990, the film drew rave review with critics as the Coen Brothers were able to score once again with its critics and a growing fan base. Commercially, the film only grossed $5 million against its $14 million budget making it a box-office bomb as 1990 also saw the release of various gangster crime films like Phil Joanou’s State of Grace and Martin Scorsese’s much-lauded Goodfellas as all three films were released around the same time while the much-anticipated Francis Ford Coppola film The Godfather Part III came out on Christmas of that year. Despite the film’s unfortunate timing of its release, the film did grow in its reputation thanks to home video as the Coen Brothers were rising high.

Barton Fink

During the troubled writing period for Miller’s Crossing, inspiration came in the form of Charles Shyer’s 1987 comedy Baby Boom as the duo watched it one night and would write a script that would become their fourth feature film Barton Fink. Barton Fink told the story of a playwright who travels to Hollywood where he’s asked by a B-movie studio head to write a movie about pro wrestling as the writer struggles with writer’s block and the world of Hollywood. The film would allow the duo to bend genre ranging from suspense, drama, comedy, and character study as they explore the world of the writer.

Playing the titular character would be John Turturro, who had previously appeared in Miller’s Crossing while new Coen regulars like John Goodman, Jon Polito, and Steve Buscemi would make appearances for the film. Also cast were Michael Lerner, John Mahoney, Judy Davis, and Tony Shalhoub as the film was set in pre-World War II 1941 as the Coen Brothers aimed to explore the world highbrow and lowbrow culture in film, theater, and literature. Notably as it centers around this writer who would face compromises and everything that pushes the writer down in a world where conformity and commerce is king.

While the film also featured contributions from regular collaborators Skip Lievsay, Carter Burwell, set decorator Nancy Haigh, production designer Dennis Gassner, and co-casting director John S. Lyons. The biggest change in their group of collaborators would in the form of British cinematographer Roger Deakins who had replaced the duo’s previous cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld who would forge a successful career as a filmmaker in directing such hit franchises for films like The Addams Family and Men In Black. While Sonnenfeld made a cameo for the film, it would be Deakins’ work as a cinematographer that would broaden the visual palette and choice of theatrical aspect ratios.

With Deakins widening their look as the film had a set piece of a hotel that served as an allegory for hell. The Coen Brothers were also able to find humor in a lot of the characters and settings for the film while bringing a sense of ambiguity that occurs in Barton Fink’s exploration into the world of Hollywood. Particularly as he would have a meeting with a revered writer who turns out to be an abusive, ignorant drunk while his hotel neighbor is a traveling salesman whom Fink claims are the kind of people he writes about. What would happen is that Fink’s character, played with tremendous gusto by John Turturro, would face all of the trials and tribulations going into what he would face as a writer as well as the fact that he should be writing for himself while not stating that he writes about this group of people or whatever.

The film premiered at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival in France where it was a major hit winning three big prizes. Along with a Best Actor prize to John Turturro and a Best Director prize to Joel Coen, the film received the festival’s biggest prize in the Palme D’or via unanimous decision from its jury and jury president Roman Polanski. The only person unhappy about the Coen Brothers’ victory was bad-boy Danish filmmaker Lars von Trier who left the ceremony early upon learning he wasn’t going to win the Palme D’or. Despite the critical acclaim and accolades the film received including three Oscar nominations for art direction, costume design, and a Best Supporting Actor nod to Michael Lerner. The film didn’t do well in the box office despite its limited release and $6 million box office gross against its $9 million budget cost.

The Hudsucker Proxy

The acclaim for Barton Fink gave the Coen Brothers some clout as the duo also hoped to gain steam in the commercial front as the duo decided to revive an old script they had written with friend/filmmaker Sam Raimi called The Hudsucker Proxy. The story of a naïve business graduate who unknowingly becomes a victim of a scam by a company director to become a company president only for the scheme to backfire when he invents the hula-hoop. Meanwhile, various people including a fast-talking reporter get involved to play with the fates of the scheme as it’s all set in late 1950s New York City.

The film would become the Coen Brothers’ first collaboration with British producers Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner of Working Title Pictures as it was also part of the burgeoning Polygram Filmed Entertainment studio from Britain. Helping the Coen Brothers to help fund the ambitious project would be producer Joel Silver who took the script to Warner Brothers studio as many thought it would be the project that would put the Coen Brothers right into the mainstream. With a lot of big stars attached to the project, Tim Robbins was eventually cast in the role of Norville Bates along with Paul Newman as the scheming Sidney J. Mussburger and Jennifer Jason Leigh as news reporter Amy Archer. Along with appearances from regulars Steve Buscemi, Jon Polito, John Mahoney, John Goodman as a newsreel voice, and Raimi regular Bruce Campbell. The project seemed to have the potential to be their ticket to the mainstream.

Instead, the very ambitious project filled with lots of visual effects and set pieces as its final budget was $25 million with an additional $15 million spent to market it. It would prove to be a massive undertaking considering the ambition the Coen Brothers had envisioned for the film as Sam Raimi helped out by shooting second unit work. Shot in Carolco studio in Wilmington, North Carolina from the fall of 1992 to early 1993, the Coen Brothers wanted to create a film that was had a big look as they recalled Terry Gilliam’s 1985 film Brazil as a major influence. For the film’s story, the Coen Brothers wanted to recall the comedy of Preston Sturges along with the films of Frank Capra and Howard Hawks while Jennifer Jason Leigh sported an accent similar to Rosalind Russell and Katherine Hepburn. It was all part of an extravagant the Coen Brothers wanted in their exploration of a man’s rise and fall as he becomes a pawn in another man’s scheme.

The film made its premiere at the 1994 Sundance Film Festival to high anticipation as it was later released in the U.S. two months later. The film received mixed reviews with critics as it was a major box office bomb making over $2 million against its final $40 million budget. Despite a better reception in Europe where the film opened the 1994 Cannes Film Festival as it played in competition for the Palme D’or. The film’s failure had the Coen Brothers retreat though the film’s reputation manage to grow with its fans as many consider the film to be one of their most underrated features.

Fargo

Following the disappointing response to The Hudsucker Proxy, the Coen Brothers decided to return to darker territory for a crime film that they claim was based on a true story. Fargo is the story of a car salesman who hires a couple of criminals to kidnap his wife in exchange for a hefty ransom from the man’s father-in-law. Meanwhile, a pregnant police chief investigates the kidnapping as well as a series of murders that occur. The film would eventually become a black comedy set in 1987 in both their native Minnesota and Fargo, North Dakota during the winter.

Shot on location in Minnesota, the Coen Brothers brought back a lot of their collaborators for the film as they also gained a new collaborator in costume designer Mary Zophres to be part of the team along with Ethan Coen‘s wife Tricia Cooke to help with the editing. For the role of the simple-minded yet determined police chief Marge Gunderson, Frances McDormand was cast in the role in her first collaboration with the Coen Brothers since her voice appearance in Barton Fink. Along with regular Steve Buscemi as the talkative kidnapper, the casting included William H. Macy, Peter Stormare, Harve Presnell, John Carroll Lynch, and comedian Steve Parks.

With a gorgeous yet eerie look captured by cinematographer Roger Deakins, the film aimed to be both a very dark crime film where the violence is graphic while the humor is also offbeat due to the Minnesotan aspects of the film where people said “Ja” throughout. With a chilling score by Carter Burwell, the Coen Brothers aim to create an unconventional approach to suspense as it would involve some very chilling scenes such as Peter Stormare’s silent yet deadly kidnapper who would kill a highway patrol officer and two witnesses in a dark, snowy night on the highway. The other chilling scene is the drop-off for the money where Buscemi’s character is supposed to meet William H. Macy’s Jerry Lundegaard only to meet up with his father-in-law who tried to control of the situation only for the encounter to be very violent.

To balance the film’s dark nature would be its humor as it is presented through what many consider to be one of the great characters in film in the form of Marge Gunderson. Through Frances McDormand’s witty and heartfelt portrayal, Gunderson is a woman who is a small town police chief that is dealing with her pregnancy and these murders that is happening. A meeting with an old high school friend (Steve Parks) is a scene that some would feel was out of place. Instead, it becomes a big moment for Gunderson as this poor man she meets turns out to be not exactly who he is which would prompt her to question Jerry Lundegaard for the second time.

Whereas things seemed fine in her first interrogation with Lundegaard, things start to unravel in the second interview where Gunderson finally realizes that something is up. Notably as it would lead to this climatic moment where Gunderson would solve the case as she would comment over everything that has happened as it is presented in a simple yet poignant shot.

The film premiered in March of 1996 in the U.S. to great acclaim as it was widely considered to be one of the year’s best films while it also became a major box office hit for the Coen Brothers grossing more than $60 million. The film was also a major festival hit as the film received all sorts of accolades where Joel Coen won directing prizes at Cannes as well as scoring a BAFTA for Best Director. The film would also win a Best Film prize from the New York Film Critics Circle and two Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay to the Coen Brothers and a Best Actress prize to Frances McDormand along with five other Oscar nods. In 2006, the film was selected to be part of the National Film Registry for the U.S. Film Preservation Society which would add to the Coen Brothers’ revered reputation.

The Big Lebowski

The big success of Fargo allowed the Coen Brothers chance to pretty much do anything they wanted. With many expecting the Coen Brothers to follow-up Fargo with something with more prestige, the Coen Brothers decided to do what they do best and go somewhere else. What they would do is create what some consider to be one of the greatest comedies of all-time in a film called The Big Lebowski. The story of a middle-aged slacker who is mistaken to be a millionaire is asked by that millionaire to deliver a ransom only for things to go wrong as a lot of hilarity ensues involving nihilists, porn stars, rival bowlers, a vagina-based artist, and all sorts of things as all the protagonist wants is compensation for his rug that tied the room together.

Whereas Fargo was this high-brow black comedy that was very dark, The Big Lebowski was the Coen Brothers aiming very low for a low-brow comedy inspired by the works of Raymond Chandler and a man they met named Jeff Lebowski back in the mid-1980s. While the script was written around the same time they were working on Barton Fink, they were unable to do the film due to production schedules as they were able to get regular John Goodman for the role of sidekick Walter Sobchak. For the role of the film’s protagonist known as the Dude, the Coens wanted Jeff Bridges for the part as he immediately accepted as he would bring his own clothes to set to play the laid-back bowler who likes to drink White Russians and smoke pot.

The cast also includes Coen regulars Steve Buscemi, Jon Polito, Peter Stormare, and John Turturro in the role of rival bowler Jesus Quintana along with Julianne Moore, Philip Seymour Hoffman, David Huddleston, David Thewlis, Ben Gazzara, musicians Aimee Mann and Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea as Stormare’s fellow nihilists, and Sam Elliot as the film’s sarsaparilla-obsessed narrator.

Set in early 1990s Los Angeles, the Coens aimed for a film that was very colorful but also zany in tune with their love for stoner comedies. Filled with a lot of off-the-wall humor, stylish dialogues, and surreal fantasy sequences. The Coen Brothers aimed to create a film that was the exact opposite of Fargo in terms of its style and dialogue. Notably as the film had John Goodman’s Walter Sobchak constantly tell Steve Buscemi’s Donny character to “shut the fuck up” since Buscemi’s character in Fargo talked constantly. Many of the characters such as the Dude, Walter, and Julianne Moore’s Maude Lebowski were based on real-life individuals as the actors were asked to give exaggerated performances while Jeff Bridges chose to remain laid-back with the character making the Dude one of cinema’s most unlikely icons.

Knowing that the film’s music had to include more than Carter Burwell’s score, the Coen Brothers brought in musician T-Bone Burnett to help compile a soundtrack for the film. With artists ranging from Bob Dylan, Kenny Rogers & the First Edition, Creedence Clearwater Revival, the Gypsy Kings, and many others. One track Burnett wanted was Townes Van Zandt’s cover of the Rolling Stones’ Dead Flowers in which Burnett had to convince former Stones’ manager Allen Klein to get permission to have the song in the soundtrack. By showing Klein a rough cut of the film, Klein gave permission to have Van Zandt’s cover used after the scene in which the Dude stated that he hates the fuckin’ Eagles.

The film premiered at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival while getting its official release two months later in March where the film received mixed reviews from audiences and critics. Despite its modest box office, the film wasn’t immediately seen as a great film until years later due to its release on home video and midnight screenings of the film where it would become a major cult classic that eventually led to an annual festival in Louisville, Kentucky celebrating the film known as Lebowski Fest. With many critics re-evaluating their opinion since its release, the film’s stature grew as many consider it to be one of the greatest comedies ever made.

Pt. 2

© thevoid99 2012