What would you do if you found a briefcase filled with cash surrounded by dead bodies? Would you keep it and risk the consequences? Or leave it behind and move on with your life? That’s what the Coen Brothers asked audiences across the world in 2007 with their adaptation of a Cormac McCarthy classic. The film featured an all-star cast, beautiful cinematography, and one of the most terrifying and iconic villains in cinema history. It’s no wonder it’s remembered as a modern classic. We’re, of course, talking about No Country for Old Men, and it’s now streaming for free.
No Country for Old Men was recently added to Pluto TV. The hit neo-western was added to the free streaming service on December 1, along with over 200 other films. Joel and Ethan Coen wrote and directed No Country for Old Men, adapting the story from Cormac McCarthy’s novel of the same name. The film follows Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin), who finds a briefcase filled with cash amidst a drug deal gone wrong. Deciding to take the cash, he is pursued by a sadistic and calculated killer, Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem). The official synopsis reads:
“While out hunting, Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) finds the grisly aftermath of a drug deal. Though he knows better, he cannot resist the cash left behind and takes it with him. The hunter becomes the hunted when a merciless killer named Chigurh (Javier Bardem) picks up his trail. Also looking for Moss is Sheriff Bell (Tommy Lee Jones), an aging lawman who reflects on a changing world and a dark secret of his own, as he tries to find and protect Moss.”
To call No Country for Old Men acclaimed would be an understatement. The film holds a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes score of 93%, with a similarly strong audience rating of 86%. “A damn near perfect film with a horrifying performance from Javier Bardem,” wrote one RT user. As well as a tremendous RT score, the film won four Oscars in 2008 (including Best Picture), and is the 145th highest rated movie of all-time on IMDb, with a score of 8.2.
‘No Country for Old Men’ Defined the Neo-Western Genre
Scenes of Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old MenMiramax
While it can be labeled an action thriller (although it’s certainly more thriller than action), some prefer the term neo-western. To the uninitiated, a neo-western features many of the tropes, trappings, and conventions of classic westerns, albeit with a modern twist. Some are simply spaghetti westerns transported to the modern day. But, the best neo-westerns don’t just honor the western genre, they completely dissect it.
Films like No Country for Old Men, Hell or High Water, and even James Mangold’s Logan, pay homage to the western genre, while also examining and subverting some of the tropes that fans loved, and those which have gone out of fashion. As well as its dissection of the genre, No Country for Old Men is also imbued with the Coen Brothers’ favorite cinematic question: “What would you do in that situation?”
Release Date
November 21, 2007
Runtime
122 minutes
