Coen Brothers: What's Next! article

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Would they lose their individuality with greater funding? Would the quality of their productions deteriorate with a wealth or riches? I doubt it. In fact, one can only hope that their sweep of the recent Oscars ceremony encourages the backers in the film industry to put more faith in artsy filmmakers like these two brothers. writes Tom Elce

To see something original, surprising, intoxicating and truly unique in cinema is becoming all too rare a treat these days, at least outside of film festivals and individual arthouse cineplexes. So when filmmakers as capable and inspired as Joel and Ethan Coen breakout into the mainstream with such success that the baron spell between their Oscar success for 1996's "Fargo" should end with an Academy nod for Best Picture and Best Director, among other awards, with the recent "No Country for Old Men," it is worth celebrating. Indeed, the writer-director siblings have been critics' darlings for the entirety of their careers, their significance in a sometimes too-flashy Hollywood major as their films frequently break down barriers, standing invigoratingly apart as cinematic triumphs in an industry too packed-full of derivative junk. Despite this, they haven't before gained the major trust of Hollywood executives, their films always seeming to come as independent triumphs lacking the financial support of more financially viable mass-market features constantly churned out.

Which is where "No Country for Old Men" comes in. Raw, mighty filmmaking that only further cements Joel and Ethan's respective standing as two of the most promising and consistent filmmakers working today, the film is rich in the neo-noir stylings of their previous work, and also in the philosophical undercurrents of characters fleshed-out regardless of whether they are supporting players or leads. Yet still it is unlike anything the brothers have made before. What else would we expect, though? This is a given, since the Coens have proven themselves perfectly capable of turning out a new work of thematic genius with every next extension to their resume, taking whatever the story into unexpected and unremittingly dark directions that ring shockingly true.

That in itself is the attraction to the Coen Brothers' work, as familiar as their consistent style always appears to be, their films are equally original, each one so much different to the Coens' previous. From 1984's crime-thriller "Blood Simple" to the aforementioned "No Country for Old Men," the duo's filmography is an exemplary one wherein cinephiles will always find a motion picture to satisfy them - they just need take their pick.

Their work is significant in Hollywood as that of independently-minded auteurs who always try to say something with their creations, in stark contrast to the beleaguering number of derivative, meaningless cinematic entries viewers are force-fed from there by other, less artistically driven writers and directors. They make films with a purpose, weaving whatever the core story is while there's always something going on underneath the surface of it all. Dry humor partners up with razor-sharp irony in many of their films, including their recent Best Picture winner, while their characters don't conform to the trend of being mere screenplay constructs, each of them (and this I mean as literally as it can be meant - with even bit-parts having more about them than many a major character ordinarily would) averting two dimensions and appearing to be real-life fleshed-out people who just happen to be appearing on a screen, ahead of the Coen's perfectly placed cameras.

Joel and Ethan always appear to be in sync with each other as they co-direct their frequently top-notch films (actors themselves have previously spoken about their identical answers to their questions, even when asked separately). Their films as a result flow with such smoothness that viewers to their films would never suspect their films are, indeed, the work of two individuals rather than one. Yet still they haven't received the backing from Hollywood executives as other, less accomplished filmmakers have done, and this is a shame despite their regularly overcoming the odds against them. I, for example, have much more fun watching films by the Coens ("Fargo," "The Big Lebowski" and "No Country for Old Men") than watching something by, say, Michael Bay. I'd like to see what Joel and Ethan would do with such big budgets as those afforded to filmmaker like Bay.

Would they lose their individuality with greater funding? Would the quality of their productions deteriorate with a wealth or riches? I doubt it. In fact, one can only hope that their sweep of the recent Oscars ceremony encourages the backers in the film industry to put more faith in artsy filmmakers like these two brothers.

In watching the slow burn near-masterpiece earlier this year, I was never bored, always thrilled. In listening to Tommy Lee Jones' sheriff Ed Tom Bell go all philosophical, I didn't identify anything about it that was trite. In watching Josh Brolin's desperate Llewelyn Moss flee Javier Bardem's ruthless Anton Chigurh I was perched on the edge of my seat. That is the power of the Coens' helming, to never allow the tension in their films to dissipate; to always promise that there is more to come; to always deliver that 'more; to devastate and capture one's attention in the most seemingly innocuous of moments. Outsiders in a Hollywood too often jumping on the latest bandwagons to come rolling by (US remakes of J-horror, or just classic US horror), Joel and Ethan stand apart from the crowd and invigoratingly so.

Juggling tone effortlessly - in their films, scenes can be devastatingly horrific and laugh-out-loud funny all in the same scene, so long as that is what the pair want - and barely putting a foot wrong in a career that has thus far spanned twenty-four years, the Coens may finally have gotten the recognition from their peers and prospective partners that may not have necessarily been lacking, but certainly dealth without substance. They move on to pastures new now, and I, like so many others, cannot wait to see what they come up with next.

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