Sunday, February 6, 2011

Rated D #2 - True Grit

A couple of weeks ago, I watched the movie "True Grit." SPOILER ALERT: Rough and abrasive Marshall hunts down bad guys in Indian Territory in the late 1800s with Matt Damon and a 14-year-old girl.

I've decided that nearly any movie can teach us some kind of lesson that we can use to our advantage. So far so good, but this could get interesting...

The movie follows the tale of a young girl who is out for revenge - or, better yet, justice - when a cowardly thief shoots her father and takes off with the family's horses. Needing a professional, she enlists the help of a Texas Ranger, who has been hunting the same man for years, and a gruff, uncompassionate Marshall with one-eye.

It's an odyssey that tests them all and is often brutally honest and pulls few punches. When it seems hopeless and that evil will get away rather than get what it deserves, an emotion other than despair enters the story. Not hope, but determination.

The power we have in ourselves to accomplish almost any goal can't be measured. Whether its hunting down bandits or... doing 100 crunches a day, the will-power and strength one can muster up can really pay off. In the words of Lady Macbeth "We fail? Screw your courage to the sticking place and we cannot fail!"... Hmm... maybe not the best quote.

"The told me you had true grit and that is why I came to you," - Hailee Steinfeld

Technically Speaking...
Great cinematography and interesting late 1800s, stylized dialogue (though occasionally hard to understand from some characters). Drags a little and doesn't provide enough screen time for gang of interesting bad guys, but another solid flick from the Coen Brothers (Fargo, No Country for Old Men, O' Brother Where Art Thou?).

Review - I give it 7 One Eyed Marshalls of 10.

Still Haven't Seen It Yet?
THE SOCIAL NETWORK - Rent it and love the dialogue. Funny, smart, and by far the best adapted screenplay of the year.

What's to come?
Look Out for the Oscar Picks! Still working on checking out the "The King's Speech" but it has yet to come to anywhere within a two hundred mile radius of us.

Next Time on Rated D...
The Dilemma - Starring Vince Vaughn, Winona Ryder and Kevin Ryan James Dooley

Gorilla Man

2 comments:

  1. nice reviews, you were missed this weekend but a fellow Montanian provided us with Montana spirit, albeit a little creepy but still a great story.

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  2. awww. for shame gorilla man. for shame

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