The Coen brothers aren’t your regular Hollywood directors. They contrast violence and Hitchcock-like suspense with no-frill story-telling. Symbolic details are often employed to lead audiences into a pre-determined set up, pushing them into another time and space. From ‘Blood Simple’, ‘Fargo’ to the Oscar award-winning ‘No Country for Old Men’, fate seems to be a recurring theme.

Their latest film ‘True Grit’ is adopted from a novel by Charles Portis, originally written in 1968. The fourteen-year-old teenage girl (Hailee Steinfeld) witnesses her father’s murder and is desperate for help. She persuades sheriff Rooster (Jeff Bridges), who then joined by hunter La Boeuf (Matt Damon) to pursue revenge. The ending certainly takes one by surprise. Mary Zophres, costume designer of this film, regularly collaborates with the Coen brothers. She especially visited Western Research Library to dig out authentic references, in order to create a convincing aeathetic.

Text: Vincent Lau | Translation: dilettante
Edit: Carmen Lee
Photo Courtesy: Intercontinental Film Distributors (H.K.) Ltd.
Update: 23 Feb 2011

Director: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Cast: Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin
Release Date: 24 Feb 2011

TRUE GRIT
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