Patrick and I got out to the movies this weekend! I can share with you that if you are on the fence about seeing True Grit, get down off of it and go see it! In the last year, I’ve seen four movies in the theater. Seriously. That’s actually a lot, come to think of it. Last Christmas, Patrick and I saw Up in the Air, which was the first movie we’d seen since S was born. In May, I saw SATC2 which was kind of a disappointment, and then last month P and I went to see HP7P1 which wasn’t a disappointment because the film was pretty good, but it wasn’t very exciting as in I knew everything that was going to happen.
I deliberately did not read too much about True Grit before going to see it and I’m so glad, but not that it would have mattered much anyway. My brain is so fogged up these days that I am not remembering much of anything. (Side note: Today I told a friend that I still have to rework a section of Chapter 2, and he said well, at least you have a draft, and I said, “I have to read the novels again” and he realized how much my brain has shut down.) So the movie. I remember reading that Matt Damon was in it, but when the movie was over and P and I were talking about it, and he commented on Matt Damon’s role, I was thunderstruck to realize that I hadn’t even realized that was him the entire time I was watching the movie! And the girl playing Mattie is so good. And Jeff Bridges was great.
But the music. I would almost pay for the movie again just to hear the music and see the scenery. Parts of it were filmed in New Mexico. I guess I could just go and hike and see the scenery for myself, but I wouldn’t have that great music. Beautiful.
If you’ve seen it, what did you think? Worth being one of four movies in a year?
Academic Leigh Speaking 
You could get the soundtrack and then hike with your MP3 player!
Tyler and I saw “True Grit” about a week ago. It may be that I have see too many films. I thought it was fine, fun story telling, but ultimately, I felt I’d heard too much of how great it was before I went, and was expecting something truly amazing. I thought it was good – Jeff Bridges is such a solid, good actor, and you can see he’s deeply in character at all moments of his performance, calculations crossing his face and the depth of his work is impressive. I liked Matt Damon, too. Hailee Steinfeld should have gotten higher billing for her performance, I thought – but still it is a man’s world, and in some ways, it’s also still a man’s movie.
The most moving scene for me is when Little Blackie dies, and she finally lets go, drops her mask out of exhaustion, poison and she’s no longer able to deny anything (her father’s death, her own act of killing another person, etc.) and cries – her innocence is gone and getting behind her quickly. I think I actually sobbed. Ultimately, however, the movie felt like a tight Western comedy, and mostly light entertainment (despite all the killing and grit).
My favorite Westerns lean more towards “Dead Man,” “Unforgiven” and “There Will Be Blood” (arguably, not a standard Western…but it relates to the lawlessness of the time), but I tend to like darker movies in general. Do all Westerns deal with a loss of innocence?
I guess that’s why I’d put “Black Swan” in my list of Best Films, and not “True Grit” or “The King’s Speech” (though I adore Geoffrey Rush, and again was entertained).
I wonder what 4 movies you will see this year!
OH! I just reread your last line. I was thinking it said “Worth being one of four movies of THE year?”
Definitely worth being one of the four you saw in a year! Sad to say, there’s not much that is a lot better.