Posted on 12/23/2010 3:42:18 PM PST by Mariner
I know, many of you can't bear the idea of somebody, anybody, taking on a role once played by John Wayne. I too was skeptical as I am a devoted Duke fan.
However, I'm also a great fan of Jeff Bridges and the Coen Brothers.
And, I can tell you this: The Dude does The Duke proud.
This is certainly the best Western since Unforgiven and probably in the top 10 ever. Yes, it's far better than the original in every respect.
Acting, dialogue, mood and photography come together to be the best movie the Coen Brothers have made.
It's not a story about vengeance. It's a story about justice. And what a story it is. The final scene before the Coda, when Rooster and Mattie are riding through the night is one of the most heart-wrenching scenes you will see in a movie. Ever.
Both are deserving of Academy Awards, as are the Coen Brothers in multiple categories.
Go see this movie in a theater...soon...
“BTW, I can, and do, know how to load any cap and ball revolver, including a Colt Dragoon, but would hesitate to load one when in a state of Rooster Cogburn type of drunkenness.”
Powder first, then the balls. Caps last. :-)
The California scenes, in addition to the shootout at the dugout I mentioned above (Hot Creek), were filmed in the Eastern Sierra: near Tom's Place south of Mammoth Lakes (Rooster with Mattie on the midnight ride after she was snake bit), also where Rooster makes the men throw their rifles in the river before taking their wagon (Owens River near Bishop) and the scene where Rooster, Mattie and LeBeef are headed toward the ferry ("This ain't no coon hunt baby sister") was filmed in the reeds near the Owens River (White Mtns in the background) about 4 miles from Bishop near my favorite trout fishing hole.
Glen Campbell. True Grit. Acting so bad it stayed with the three of us that long.
**********************
Now you guys lay off Glen a little bit. He is just a good ol’ boy from Arkansas who could sing and write songs, too.
Back in ‘69 I owned a motel that Glen had lived at during his beginner days and he used to play at the club across the street for his supper. I didn’t know him personally but the lady we bought the business from knew him well and owned the club.
He was always good to her after he made it big and would fly her to Vegas when he performed. He is a good, conservative Christian man. IMHO
I didn’t know this about Wayne. Yes, Jimmy Stewart was indeed a great American.
I'm betting they did no less than 40 takes on that one:)
Can you imagine Bridges' trepidation when first approached by the Coen Brothers to make this movie? He had to know it was potentially a career-ending decision. I thought he did a damn fine job.
The biggest problem with the first one is that The Duke had no support. The other two principal actors just plain sucked.
In this new one, Mattie is the definitive character in the movie.
And, I'll forever have a crush on her...
What man would not want such a daughter?
So, this it technically not a remake of a movie. The Coen brothers went back to the original source, the book, and made a movie much closer to the source.
I am looking forward to it. Will see it some time this weekend.
“...He is just a good ol’ boy from Arkansas who could sing and write songs, too...”
And he could play the guitar as a studio muscian which is a very rare thing for a singer. He also had the homegrown accent for the locale of the story.
I thought he handled that boarding house dinner table scene perfectly. As for the river crossing when Wayne sez “By God she reminds me of me” I thought Campbell delivered a difficult line well: “I don’t think we’re gonna get along at all”...cause his expression was a perfect combination of disgust and bewilderment.
Kim Darby was cute, though.
Glen’s a good guy. I used to live in Phoenix. Went to a Suns game one night. Unannounced, Glen came out and sang the national anthem, accompanying himself on a 12 strong guitar. Very, very nice.
We'll have to agree to disagree then, because it's my premise that the sequels and remakes that are better than the originals are rare, RarE, RARE creatures.
They may exist, but they're 1/100.
I’ve never seen the original, but I plan to see this one.
Correctly (in a state of drunkeness)
“...that ‘ole barn, why you can throw a cat through the south wall....”
“...damn, she reminds me of me...”
I quoted that to my Mom when Palin made her RNC speech a few years back. (now of course I'm not as great as Mrs. Palin, however, I think we are kindered spirits).
Gosh, that movie has so many great quotes and scenes to boot. Like in the court scene, and Rooster talking about the ‘hogs’, and how many men he shot....”...shot or killed...” he said.
Merry Christmas to all on FR. RedShawk.
>>Sally Field auditioned for True Grit and was very disappointed that she didn’t get it. I think she would have been great.<<
I did not know that. Thanks for the tip.
I think that if Sally got the job, the movie would have been very different because she is so Hot, and of course a great actor, whereas Kim was a relative unknown and plain. (Yeah, I have a crush on Sally too)
BTW, I can, and do, know how to load any cap and ball revolver, including a Colt Dragoon, but would hesitate to load one when in a state of Rooster Cogburn type of drunkenness.<<
Hey no worries calex59, TrueGrit fans knew what you ment (posted).
Golly, you have a Colt Dragoon? Cool.
Hey calex59, what did Rooster call his bed? Hint: Early in the movie with Mattie.
That's a great one too.
There's another one when the boy was hacking the chicken in the ‘hide-out’ shack. However, just slips my mind..
Do you know it?
LOL. Well, not in that sort of way. I think it’s a tie with him and Connery. Connery was a little smoother, easier to believe he would fit in at Monte Carlo. But Craig is more of what I’d expect out of an SAS agent.
That's another goodie. Especially since Rooster attempted to lie to Mattie about where he was from...Austin? he said.
Dang, at this point in the movie, Rooster was such a Smuck !
Remember what he said about camp fires?
**He is a good, conservative Christian man. IMHO***
He was a member of the Campbellite Churches of Christ, a group which does not believe in remarriage after divorce.
It didn’t stop him from divorcing his wife and taking up another C&W country singer. I believe it was Tanya Tucker.
Campbell then really went wild in the 1970s.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.