True Grit Movie Review



Wanted:  This Awesome Movie

     Calling True Grit a western immediately leads one to assume that it will be riddled with gun fights and cut-throat outlaws, and while True Grit has those things, the focus of the film is instead on developing its characters.  The movie begins with fourteen-year-old Mattie Ross entering a western town seeking revenge against the man who killed her father, outlaw Tom Chaney.  She enlists the help of Rooster Cogburn, a notorious mercenary, and Texas Ranger LaBoeuf to help her track down her father's murderer and bring him to justice.

     The meat of True Grit isn't action packed shoot outs (of which there are only a few), but rather watching the characters grow off of each other.  As a young girl Mattie is initially dismissed by the older, more experienced men; Cogburn tries to set out without her and LaBoeuf goes as far as to beat her for slowing them down.  Thus it becomes really satisfying when you watch the characters bond as they are forced to struggle through the same challenges together.  It was also fun to watch the rivalry between Cogburn and LaBoeuf play out, yelling at each other one moment and saving each others lives the next.

     Unfortunately, there is a bit of a missed opportunity when it comes to Tom Chaney.  He comes off as a brutish and not too bright thug, with no irredeemable qualities whatsoever.  It could have been a nice moral dilemma for Mattie if she discovered that the murderer wasn't so bad after all, but this idea isn't even touched upon.  Chaney is the villain and deserves to die, and that's about all there is to it.

     One reason True Grit succeeds despite this is because it isn't afraid to have a sense of humor.  It's amazing how one moment the movie is gut-wrenching and the next moment crack a joke or three.  For a movie dealing with such serious subject matter it surprised me just how many times I laughed out loud throughout the duration.  It's also great to see how the movie shifts from serious to light-hearted and back again in a series of contrasts that make both moods equally poignant.  One moment we witness the grisly murder of a rancher and the next the tension is diffused with Cogburn remarking "the ground's too cold-if he wanted a proper burial he should have died in the summer."

Conclusion:  Those looking for an action packed joy ride should look elsewhere-you can count the number of shootouts in film on one hand.  While the slow pace may disappoint some, it definitely pays out in a big way by delivering some of the best characterization that I've seen since Inception.

Rating:  9/10 "Awesome"

Favorite Moment (Spoilers):  Watching Cogburn race through the wilderness to saze Mattie's life was an emotional ride, made even more so once he ditches the exhausted horse and runs forwarded on foot while carrying her.  This is the moment that defines their relationship.