Audio Review of
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
by Pastor James Harleman

The COEN BROTHERS adapted Cormac McCarthy’s novel into this film of the same name, After writing No Country in 2005, the 75 year old McCarthy has won a Pulitzer Prize for his novel “The Road” in 2006, once again exploring his familiar themes of extreme isolation, perversity, and violence to represent normal human experience. The novel’s motifs of chance, free-will, and predestination are familiar territory for the Coen brothers, and the film subsequently won the Academy Award for Best Picture in early 2008. With so many prizes surrounding these themes and creators, it is fascinating to explore why these works have had such an unstoppable impact on our culture.

“It’s been traveling twenty-two years to get here. And now it’s here. And it’s either heads or tails. And you have to say. Call it.” - Anton Chigurh

Violence and mayhem ensue after a hunter stumbles upon some dead bodies, a stash of heroin and more than $2 million in cash near the Rio Grande. No Country For Old Men, the 2008 Oscar winner for Best Picture (and in three other categories) stumbled upon the Wedgwood Campus for our live, monthly Cinemagogue event.

I’ve been a big fan of the Coen brothers since Raising Arizona and have enjoyed their work from Miller’s Crossing to The Hudsucker Proxy. For some reason, I’d missed The Big Lebowski until last year and finally enjoyed Jeff Bridges amazing performance. (Did anyone notice Jeff’s tip of the hat to Lebowski in his latest film, Iron Man?) Still, I wasn’t immediately enraptured with this film as most were last year. A few friends of mine loathed it. After contemplation, repeat viewing, and some study, it’s actually quite illuminating to me why this film has struck a chord in both film buff and casual viewer and I’ve come to a profound appreciation for what the film has to offer.

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A review of IRON MAN (PG-13)
by Pastor James Harleman

I sat through Black Sabbath’s classic “Iron Man” tune, watching the film’s techno-credits dazzle until the familiar scroll kicked in. The friends who’d accompanied me and sat through the two-hour rocket of a film stood up from their seats, but then glanced back at me; I shook my head, pointed to the screen, and remained. With a sigh, they sat back down. The payoff was well worth it, whether you were astonished by the teaser scene that followed the movie’s credits or whether you just listened for the sound of comic fan-boys going into seizures throughout the auditorium.

The guy with the Fantastic Four T-shirt behind me stared blankly at the screen and mumbled to his compatriot, “I think I just soiled myself.” An odd but awestruck offering on the altar of Stan Lee. Thankfully, I’m pretty sure he was joking. However, this thrill ride of a flick, propelled by tight, slick direction by Jon Favreau and fueled almost entirely on Robert Downey Jr.’s charisma, has an amazing test flight that sets a high bar for the summer movies to follow.

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