Showdown of the Southwest Movies: There Will Be Old Men.

I'm coo-coo for acronyms.

So many months ago, Christie and I went to see a movie. "There Will Be Blood," she said. "It's won all kinds of awards. I vaguely remembered something with oil and Paul Dano screaming in a preview. We ended up at "No Country for Old Men," the flick my boyfriend wanted to see when I stubbornly dragged him to "Cloverfield" (see Moxie's Summer Entertainment Preview). I had heard virtually nothing about the actual plot, just that it was good. Perhaps "Old Men" in the title had stifled my interest. Christie and I ended up at NCFOM once she heard that TWBB was rather gorey and/or violent (it's not). A few nights ago I finally saw TWBB, so here is my analysis on the two.

Both these movies are set in the Southwest and came out last year--NCFOM especially would be great at the drive-in outside Lubbock. The panoramic shots would seem to extend beyond the silver screen, blending into the big sky and scrubby desert spiked with mesas. TWBB is based on Upton Sinclair's 1927 novel, titled "OIL!" I could see how it'd be a good novel, especially if you appreciate Sinclair, but NCFOM is clearly the winner in this killer cowboy filmfest. Here's why:

1) Actors--Daniel Day Lewis sounds like James Bond and looks like Tom Selleck (neither of these are bad). The killer in NCFOM has a horribly awesome haircut and is named Chighur (pronounced "sugar"). Paul Dano holds my heart in his teenage hands. Bottom line--Tommy Lee is the old man for which there is no country. He is wrinkly, real, perplexed, and just a good old dude who can't understand the brutality of the modern world. Oh, and if that's not enough, um...WOODY HARRELLSON's in it. Meow. Only a few men can pull off the white jeans look.

2) Weaponry--close call here, you be the judge: bowling pin or compressed air tank. I call it a tie, but (spoiler here) because Daniel Day Lewis screams "I'm finished!" after using said bowling pin on his enemy and it's the last scene, I will call it even. The air tank is fucking brilliant though.

3) References to Title--ok, a major pet peeve of mine is when actors actually say the title of the movie as part of the dialogue. Example, "Dude, Where's My Car?" TWBB is guilty, although in an unexpected way. NCFOM is the best kind of innocent. The title's meaning becomes fully clear after viewing and pondering.

4)Quotes--*note: TWBB seemed to have a lot of utterances answered with silences. Ok sometimes. NCFOM had a variety of characters from the dopey sidekick cop, the lovely but also old wife of TLJ, and the old coot who lives out in the country--all of whom avoid being cliches and carry on great dialogue.
NCFOM:
Llewelyn Moss: If I don’t come back, tell mother I love her.
Carla Jean Moss: Your mother’s dead, Llewelyn.
Llewelyn Moss: Well then I’ll tell her myself.
TWBB:
H.M. Tilford: How's your boy?
Plainview: Thank you for asking.
H.M. Tilford: Is there anything we can do?
Plainview: "Thanks for asking" is enough.

5) Female roles--pretty much aren't any in TWBB. Carla Jean in NCFOM is only person to refuse to play Chirghu's crazy mind game. Hands down.

6) Soundtrack--here TWBB has the edge. Very Kubrick-esque music, made me think of the Shining.

7) Bonus point--NCFOM involves a transponder. TWBB has a big oil fire, but NCFOM has a car chase.

Good scenes and final statements:




Final Score: No Country 6, There Will Be Milkshakes 2. Paul Thomas Anderson's epic story of family and greed is no match for the Coehns' psycho-killer and a suitcase full of money. If you need further convincing, go fill up your gas tank--I don't want to see a movie about oil.

Next time: Battle of the Bags--Baghead vs. The Strangers.