I'm going on holiday soon so this one could be short. Then again I might get into rant mode and go on and on ............. Anyway in H.A.V.O.C.#7 I mentioned the Coen Brothers, I also mentioned that they would probably get their own H.A.V.O.C. Well this is it! These guys along with a handful of other filmmakers changed my outlook on film in general some time ago. Their first film BLOOD SIMPLE hit the cinemas in 1984. A modern film noir I saw it at the time in Dublin in The Screen at College Street now simply called The Screen. This cinema used to and still does show mainly art house films. The reviews were good at the time. Here was a film made by a couple of young guys,that cost nothing and was bucking the trend. Anyhow it blew my socks off. It had it all,good music ,a great storyline and some truly original cinematography (really different camera angles etc.etc.). It won awards for direction at both the Sundance and American Spirit Film Festivals.
I was equally impressed by their follow up RAISING ARIZONA (1987). An offbeat comedy about a childless couple who kidnap one of five newly born quintuplets from a furniture tycoon. This film had one of the first and best uses of Steadicam in cinema to date.In 1990 they released MILLER'S CROSSING ,starring GABRIEL BYRNE as a gangsters fixer (or bagman) in an un-named American city during prohibition. This was a beautifully shot ,stylish movie with some really snappy dialogue. It remains one of my all time favourite films! The characters were originally Jewish but ALBERT FINNEY coaxed the director(s)? to change their ethnicity to Irish. It has one of the greatest uses of the song DANNY BOY yes DANNY BOY on film I have ever seen.
At this stage I thought these fellas could do no wrong. BARTON FINK (1991) was up next and all the talk was it was a magnificent film. It had just won the Palme D'Or at Cannes Film Festival. When I saw it I just couldn't figure out what all the fuss was about,I was very disappointed. This was critically acclaimed all over the place.And so began my love/hate ,well not really love/hate maybe more of a like/don't like relationship with the films of JOEL and ETHAN COEN.
Next up was THE HUDSUCKER PROXY(1994) this one fell into the don't like category all style and no substance. It was a massive box office flop making back only $3 million of its $25 million budget.
Then there was the crime thriller FARGO (1996). Our relationship was back on track with this one. A great film funny , dark ,clever ,poignant ,everything!! It also won 2 Oscars.Their next one was THE BIG LEBOWSKI (1998) which proved to be a huge commercial hit. I didn't like it at the time. So I'll classify it as a not like . But I should really see it again. It's now considered to be a cult classic.
O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU? came out in 2000. I absolutely loved this film. Based loosely on Homer's Odyssey, it had a great cast and great music.The soundtrack was compiled by T-BONE BURNETT who won an Oscar this year,I think, for the music in CRAZY HEART starring JEFF BRIDGES who won best actor award for the same film. This was the brothers first film to feature GEORGE CLOONEY and it proved to me at least that GEORGE was much more than just a pretty face was in that rubbish E.R. again my opinion.THE MAN WHO WASN'T THERE (2001) with BILLY BOB THORNTON was another I didn't get.
Nor was INTOLERABLE CRUELTY(2003) or the remake of the Ealing classic THE LADYKILLERS(2004).
This was 3 in a row that I didn't rate ,far from it ,I was getting worried had the boys lost their mojo? But I'd come this far with these fellas I'd have to persevere.NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (2007) I have talked about before. It's one of my all time favourites let alone a COEN BROS. favourite. At last back on track.
BURN AFTER READING(2008) I found mildly amusing ,I find it hard to categorise,maybe I should stop categorising!
Earlier this year in Antwerp I saw A SERIOUS MAN. I didn't like it ,tried to, honestly.
OK so that's 6 films in the like category and 7 in the dislike category.
- LIKE DISLIKE
- BLOOD SIMPLE
- RAISING ARIZONA
- MILLERS CROSSING
- BARTON FINK
- HUDSUCKER PROXY
- FARGO
- BIG LEBOWSKI
- O BROTHER
- THE MAN WHO........
- INTOLERABLE CRUELTY
- THE LADYKILLERS
- NO COUNTRY
- BURN AFTER READING
- A SERIOUS MAN
- ???????????
And so fear not , up next is a remake of TRUE GRIT based on the source novel by Charles Portis. I read this book earlier this year and yep I'm really looking forward to it. Looking at that list I cant imagine the last 25 years without these two geniuses.Ever the optimist
Hugh Hyland.
