The Cohen brothers’ latest outing is possibly their darkest yet, a slick and stylish take on the cat and mouse chase game, almost perfectly executed, quite literally.

Superb casting with spectacular, career defining performances from lesser known but well sought after Josh Brolin, as the local man who stumbles upon the cache of drugs and money among a number of corpses and Javier Bardem, the philosophical, chillingly brutal psychopathic hired killer, never more than a few steps behind. He is possibly one of the coolest and most calculating hired killers from the genre. His choice of weaponry is intimidating and he usually kills with such smooth and decisive judgement.

The kills are often cold and calculated but Bardem also annihilates a whole host of unsuspecting ‘innocents’, from strangers on the highway to anyone that gets in the way as well as wives and a few police officers not paying close enough attention to him. The characters are among the Cohen brothers’ finest and darkest yet, with an array of varying deaths. Practically anyone that meets or sees Javier shouldn’t expect to last the rest of the scene, save one or two lucky few.

The A-list stars step back to make way for the lesser known lead roles, but Tommy Lee Jones is amazing as the local contemplative sheriff who is probably the least trigger-happy sheriff the state has ever seen, only pulling his gun out when absolutely necessary. There are also a few great smaller parts by Woody Harrelson, Kelly Macdonald and Beth Grant, who always has small but memorable moments.

The ending is rather abrupt but like life itself, is not rounded to completion, leaving me rather unquenched. Many cases from the perspective of the police are left unsolved, with many unanswered questions remaining.

The typically Cohen brothers’ narration at the start by Tommy Lee Jones sets the scene against the colossal and stunning backdrop of the old country, but knowing their work, this does not guarantee his survival at the end of the film. Despite being possibly their coldest and darkest film to date, the Cohen brothers’ humour is still apparent especially through Tommy Lee Jones always on the outskirts of the action. Perfect timing on the long silences and pauses between dialogue, although Jones and Javier never actually meet they both seem to be in sync. An instant classic.

by Ian Cook