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Review: ‘True Grit’ (Grade: A-)
Some might argue about the necessity of remaking a classic film that garnered a beloved screen icon his only Academy Award. But if John Wayne’s oversized boots are to be filled, there might be no tandem more equipped for the task than Joel and Ethan Coen. And, as it turns out, they know just the Dude to help them accomplish the feat.
On the heels of his Oscar-winning portrayal of modern cowboy Bad Blake in last year’s ‘Crazy Heart,’ Bridges imbues with fresh life the dusty cliché the Duke made famous in 1969’s ‘True Grit.’
As the revenge tale begins, words from Proverbs 28:1 appear on the screen: ‘The wicked flee though no one pursues.’
Maybe out of playfulness or maybe because they simply like to be coy, the filmmaking brothers, who have proven to be skilled hands in dealing both with scripture and period pieces, decided to leave out the second half of that verse … “But the righteous are as bold as a lion.”
The cagey and proud animal in this case is 14-year-old Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld). Having lost her father, the fierce young protagonist of Charles Portis’ novel has traveled to Texas in pursuit of her father’s killer. We meet her as she is attempting to get her family’s affairs in order, doggedly arguing with a greedy and duplicitous funeral director.
But Mattie is no vulnerable cub. Her girlish pigtails, framing a stoic face slathered with a broad nose, belie a cunning wisdom and stern will. In both her dealings with the funeral director and later in a prolonged negotiation with a horse trader who, like most, is no match for Mattie’s intellect, the young girl engages in a precise volley of hard-boiled dialogue that feels like a game of double Dutch played with a latigo.
Having asked about town for someone who could assist her in hunting down her father’s killer, the coward Tom Chaney, Mattie sets her sights on acquiring the help of U.S. Marshall Reuben J. “Rooster” Cogburn (Bridges), a fearless man steeled by true grit.
We come to meet Cogburn through a wonderful piece of expository courtroom testimony. His face half-shrouded in a beard that looks as tended to as his manners and his right eye covered by a patch, Cogburn grouses and growls about the men he has killed, the swagger in his voice keeping him just shy of sounding like Karl Childers in “Sling Blade.”
Mattie is mesmerized and sets about the aggravating work of convincing the gin-blossomed Cogburn to join her on her mission to mete justice. In preparation for the dangerous journey that will take them into Choctaw Nation, Mattie happens across LaBoeuf (pronounced luh-beef), a Texas Ranger who appears more Dudley Do-Right than heroic lawman, played with a charming self-awareness by Matt Damon.
With the overcompensating LaBoeuf — who jangles his spurs like a cocker spaniel draped in Christmas bells and shows off his badge as if it had been bestowed on him by God — the unlikely trio sets out to seek Mattie’s revenge.
Most of the dynamism along the way comes from the unending humorous barbs exchanged between the two lawmen, who seemingly tussle for Mattie’s admiration.
But, in true Coen fashion, there are graphic bursts of violence that nonchalantly splatter the screen with a shrug as the hand of the law — and seemingly the Lord — exacts its toll from the wicked.
Bridges amazingly pulls off the dichotomous work of being undeniably recognizable while utterly disappearing inside the role of the lone anti-hero who is reluctantly brought to feel compassion by the pint-sized heroine. Even when you know what he is about to say, or when he says nothing at all, Bridges never ceases to amaze with the subtleties of his unique talent.
There is little doubt the actor who has quickly risen to the level of national treasure will receive another Oscar nomination, as will his bold young counterpart.
Although the Coens’ version of the Portis novel better serves the author’s comedic tone while avoiding schmaltzy sentiment, the movie at times feels a bit detached. Like the stark countryside so brilliantly captured by cinematographer Roger Deakins, a longtime Coen collaborator, the film’s heart at times feels muted, its soul taken for granted.
Despite its minor flaws, “True Grit” probably will end up being the Coens’ most accessible work, not a modern classic but still one of the year’s most enjoyable films.
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