True Grit...

[Dances With Coyotes]

I can't remember if he mentioned the Navies other than when he was talking about charging the 7 members of that posse, but in the book he said he had had the Navies a long time. Woulda been just like a guerrilla fighter to hold onto his old ways. They looked bigger than Navies to me. Of course they might have made that change for the movie as them big horse pistols looked better on screen (think of Josey Wales with them Walkers he had)

 

[ebiggs1]

Being a Kansas Jayhawker myself and living near to Lawrence Kansas, I find the story of The Burning of Lawrence to be still very much talked about here. And further, most of the John Wayne movies have a little, albeit very little, basis in historical fact. True Grit is no exception. I suppose the most famous scene in the movie is the meadow scene with the confrontation with Rooster and Ned Pepper. But did you know this was actually the way it was commonly done? The raid on Lawrence by Quantriall and “Bloody” Bill Anderson and 'Rooster Cogburn' was carried out in the same manner. The raiders usually carried two six guns poked into their belts crossways. They seldom carried rifles or carbines.
In fact there is an old newspaper story, told by Colonel Cox, the man that was charged with capturing Anderson, about his final skirmish. Here it is in part.

“...Anderson and some 20 of his men came in their historic manner, with their bridle reins in their teeth and revolver in each hand. When my men opened fire, many of Anderson's command went down. ...”

Colonel Cox had set an ambush for Anderson who met his end there near Albany Missouri. A couple more well known characters from that bunch of raiders was Jesse James and Cole Younger.

 

[Celt5494]

I went to the theater yesterday and saw the movie. It definately wasn't as good as the original. It wasn't a bad movie and I did enjoy it for what it was. The thing I enjoyed about it the most was there was almost a full audience and 90% of them were over 65. This movie has sure sparked some curiosity.

 

[Swampman]

I'd say it's the best movie I've ever seen. No farby hats or other junk...thank God.

The girl in the original True Grit (Kim Darby) was so unattractive and annoying I couldn't enjoy it.

 

[mtcurman]

Best movie I've seen in a looong time. I liked how LaBouef was always extolling virtues on "The Sharps Carbine"! :haha: Lucky Ned Pepper's 1875 Remington had me drooling there for a minute! :bow: I thought Mattie and LaBouef were great in this one. I loved how blunt Mattie was, like when she told that guy in the cabin very frankly "I don't like you." :haha: Jeff Bridges made an excellent Rooster Cogburn. I don't think you should compare this one to the JW version, two totally different ways of telling the story.
Two thumbs up! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

 

[CaptainKirk]

Frankly, I was a bit disappointed. It was a good movie & all, Bridges was fantastic, Damon waaaay better than Glen Campbell ever was, Barry Pepper really good too, as Ned Pepper. Josh Brolin left me cold, though, despite his incredible performance in "No Country For Old Men". The Mattie character started out great, but fell flat in the middle. I also expected a bigger gunfight at the cabin....a perfect opportunity to show off some BP guns under the moonlight, complete with large muzzle flashes and sparks. A missed opportunity, in my book. I would give it 3 stars out of 4, but I think I built it up to a much higher expectation than it was due to the actors involved and the fact that the Coens directed it.Frankly, I was expecting a 4+ star movie, and it didn't quite get me there.
But...don't let this sway anyone from seeing it..by all means, go, see for yourself, and tell us if you think I'm full of beans!

 

[deseeb2001]

Went and watched it with my wife this afternoon, I was pretty well impressed. Much better than I thought it would turn out, that's for sure. I like the original, but Mattie was more annoying in that one than anything else. Although it's been a while since I've seen the original, I think I enjoyed this time around more with a better knowledge of older firearms and knowing a little of what to look for. All in all, a well-told story, I'll likely end up owning both versions here at some point.

 

[Old Charlie]

If stumbling around and mumbling unintelligibly is great acting Jeff Bridges deserves an Oscar.

 

[CoyoteJoe]

I was disappointed, I'd rather have watched the original yet again. Matt Damon certainly did a better job than Glen Campbell but who wouldn't. Otherwise I liked all of the original characters better. Mattie Ross was supposed to be annoying. The up beat ending of the original with the Duke jumping his horse was much better than the sad grave yard scene too.
I'd have to call it a very pale version of a great movie.

 

[PaulN/KS]

The ending of the first movie was pure Hollywood re-write... This new version pretty much follows the book word for word at the end. I like both movies and am re-reading my copy of the book just to compare the two.
The first version followed the book real close at the cabin scene BTW...

 

[Kevin Makel]

I was disappointed, I'd rather have watched the original yet again. Matt Damon certainly did a better job than Glen Campbell but who wouldn't. Otherwise I liked all of the original characters better. Mattie Ross was supposed to be annoying. The up beat ending of the original with the Duke jumping his horse was much better than the sad grave yard scene too.
I'd have to call it a very pale version of a great movie.

I totally agree with you.

 

[deseeb2001]

Good point on Mattie, I guess I should clarify. I was referring to the delivery of her lines when I described her as annoying. She was annoying to a degree in the new one, and I thought it was much more "in character" this time around.

 

[GregC]

I liked it but I don't think you can say it was better than the original. It wasn't in my opinion. The larger than life scene at the end of the original with JW charging Ned spin cocking his Winchester is what made JW so spectacular. You felt good watching him do that. Good guy v. bad guy. Classic western. The good guy always gets his man.

In the book does LeBeuf die like in the JW version or live like in the new version? Just curious?

 

[PaulN/KS]

LeBoef doesn't die in the book... the end of the new movie follows the end of the book almost word by word. Including Mattie's conversation with Cole Younger and comment to Frank James.
It is kind of funny how the old and new movies left certain things in and added some stuff as well... :hmm: That hanging dead guy and the bear coat fellow in the new version must have come from some other book cause they ain't in my edition... :shake:

 

[Bill Hall]

Finally saw it about two hours ago. Personally, I think it was a thousand times better than the John Wayne cookie cutter original. Without comparing it to the first movie, it still stands high on its own. Renewed my hope that it's still possible to make good movies. Going to see it again. :thumbsup: :thumbsup: Bill

 

[rusty]

I watched the new version last week and the older Duke version last night.I will take the new version any day,a much better movie and it moved along a little quicker..D

 

[guad42]

I saw the new film on New Year's Day and greatly enjoyed it. I think the negative comparisons to the John Wayne version are silly. They are completely different films, and honestly the new film more closely follows what Charles Portis intended with his novel, and like the novel the story is told from the perspective of "Mattie", recounting the events many years later.

Also, my final thought on all of this; whether you prefer the older film (which still holds up) or the new one - the Coen Brothers have achieved the remarkable - a feature Western that has grossed more than 100 Million Dollars at the Box Office in less than a month. It is quite possible that the Coen Brothers have given the Western genre a potential comeback.

 

[ozark57]

Great movie. I will go back to the theater and see it again

 

[Rhett Griffith]

Saw this movie last week and really liked it. I liked the fact that the dialogue between the characters had a more 19th century feel, a certain amount of formality that our modern English lacks. I think I liked this version better than the JW version.

 

[buford87]

As regards the dialouge, when my wife and I watched the new movie just before Christmas she remarked that no one talked with contractions....................watch yer top knot..........