Last weekend I managed without meaning it, to pick two DVD movies that both had largely unsatisfying endings.
The first was No Country For Old Men - a great cast, I was particularly interested to see Javier Bardem who is such a extraordinary looking specimen of all things latin that I was interested to see him in this film after a personal introduction in Goya’s Ghosts. Then of course Tommy Lee Jones and Woody Harrelson … well at least you know what you’re going to get.
Going off on a tangent … I’m also a bit of a geek when it comes to films, sometimes the associated back-story, mistakes or arguments between film buffs are far more interesting than the film itself. As such, an addiction to the IMDB has gripped me. If such things also interest you it’s worth visiting the No Country For Old Men discussions on IMDB - this film is definitely a love-it-or-hate-it proposition.
Before I rented it I didn’t know that No Country For Old Men was a Cohen brothers film of whom I am a fan (favourite film from the Cohen’s? - at a push Raising Arizona). So it was all good … until the end of the film. Call me old fashioned, but I like resolution in a film - no lose ends, not necessarily a happy ending, but at least an ending. At the risk of spoiling the film for you [STOP READING!], the bad guy continues doing bad guy stuff, the hero dies an off-screen death and the cop retires to annoying old man oblivion. Dark, cynical, probably true to life, but an unsatisfying way to close off a couple of hours of viewing.
The second film was the similarly interestingly produced Cloverfield (the film was produced by the controverisal J.J. Abrams of the Lost TV series fame). My summary being … a jittery start (camera work & content), adrenaline packed introduction of the monster, silly plotline, daft running about, wot-no-ending. I challenge anyone who has seen this film to not want to know what happens to the monster … I guess you need to wait for the endless sequels (if the trajectory Lost has taken is anything to go by).
I guess this is a new genre of film … the never-ending story …so in the same vein, I’ll leave this post, no conclusion and ready for a sequel!
