For a change, the Oscar committee had their heads screwed on straight

i went to see no country for old men in december... as i was buying my ticket at the window and the man at the window next to me heard me tell the cashier which movie i wanted to see, he turned and said to me, "great movie, terrific movie..."

since i choose my movies very carefully, not wanting to dump out good money on a dud, i had already read several reviews and figured i was going to see something pretty good, but i had no idea HOW good... not only am i a fan of the coen brothers, but i'm also an avid reader of cormac mccarthy, upon whose book the movie was based, and who, imho, is one of the great writers of all time (although this is one i haven't read)...

i was unable to comprehend how any of mccarthy's works could be turned into film without destroying it (all the pretty horses comes to mind), but this was one of those movies that, when it was over, the audience just sat there, stunned, until the credits stopped rolling, and, even then, were slow to begin leaving the theater...


Directors Ethan Coen (L) and Joel Coen (R) pose at the Governor's Ball after
winning Oscars for best director and best adapted screenplay, next to
producer Scott Rudin who holds an Oscar for best picture for their work
in "No Country for Old Men", following the 80th annual Academy Awards,
the Oscars, in Hollywood February 24, 2008.

REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson


Actor Javier Bardem poses with his Oscar statuette after
winning best supporting actor for his work in "No Country
for Old Men" at the 80th annual Academy Awards in
Hollywood, February 24, 2008.

REUTERS/Mike Blake

here's the trailer, and if this doesn't do it for you, then just move along...

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Cormac McCarthy

Cormac McCarthy

those of you who follow this blog know i almost never push books, movies, or anything else entertainment or retail related... i am making an exception... i finished reading cormac mccarthy's "the road" early last evening in miami, and just now discovered that both it and mr. mccarthy have been awarded the 2007 pulitzer prize for fiction...

before dropping off to sleep last night, i tried to come up with a fitting shorthand way to describe the myriad scenes in the book, each one so jewel-perfect, so elegantly minimalist, and so devastatingly impactful, that they literally took my breath away, but i couldn't do it... the following doesn't do it either, but maybe you'll get the idea...

The famously reclusive Mr. McCarthy, 73, won for his devastating chronicle of a father and son walking alone across a post-apocalyptic America, cold, dark and strewn with corpses and ash. In her review in The New York Times,, Janet Maslin wrote, “ ‘The Road’ would be pure misery if not for its stunning, savage beauty.”

i've read a number of his other books, and, i have to say, imho, he is one of the best writers i have ever read, bar-none...

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