Okay, I was mistaken: Tron Legacy will not be the last movie I see and review for 2010.  That honor has been ceremoniously usurped by the surprising year-end "True Grit", the Coen Brothers' adaptation of the 1968 Charles Portis novel of the same name.  I'm not big on the Western genre (about the only one I really enjoyed was 3:10 To Yuma), but in the face of near unanimous praise and several personal recommendations, I gave it a go.  I'm glad I did.

First, check out the trailer here.  Now disassociate all perceptions you have about it, because the tone of the actual film itself couldn't be more dissimilar.  With True Grit, the sentimentalities generally associated with the American Western are completely tossed out the window.  Badass and brooding?  Traded in for whimsy and mirth.  There's a copious amount of humor that laces the script and tone, with the comedy largely black and sardonic.  It's a talkative movie, but there's no end to the level of wit, frivolity, and amusement found in the dialogue.  Which isn't to say there aren't any dark turns along the way; it is a tale of vengeance, and when the action hits, the stark contrast manages to hit you square in the gut.  I'm stunned that the MPAA didn't tag this with a R rating; some of the violence is pretty graphic and unflinching.

The film is a real character piece.  It's deftly delivered by a top notch cast who get completely lost in their roles.  Of the main stars, Jeff Bridges is especially incredible, and I wouldn't be surprised if he took home another Best Actor Oscar for his pitch-perfect portrayal of Marshal Rooster Cogburn.  Matt Damon plays a little more second fiddle when compared to Bridges, but his La Boeuf is an essential presence as Cogburn's rival and partner.  Even young newcomer Hailee Steinfeld should have a shot at Best Actress for her indomitable and headstrong Mattie Ross.  Her character's no-nonsense and straight-laced manner is such a perfect foil for the rest of the cast, and she manages to bounce off each and every other actor with fluent ease.

Even the music throws you for a loop.  Straying far away from the clichéd trappings of the genre, composer Carter Burwell doesn't go the spaghetti western route at all.  There's no twangy acoustics, no harmonica, no Morricone-esque choir shouts, and no solo whistling performances.  Mostly strings and piano-laden, the score is aggressively laid back and spiritually uplifting, heavily relying on the thematic foundations of a number of famous hymns such as "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms" and "The Glory-Land Way".  It all makes for a soothing and idyllic listen, and even the most brutal sounding track titles like "The Wicked Flee" and "The Hanging Man" have an amiable musical warmth to them.

What a delight True Grit turned out to be.  I'm now inclined to go read up on the novel, and maybe even see the 1969 John Wayne adaptation.

Sounds cool. Will True Grit usurp The Big Lebowski as my favorite Coen Bros. flick? We'll have to see. This christmas yielded two free movie passes.

Funny, you mention the Big Lebowski. While I don't really get why people love it - my favorite Coen flick being Fargo - my sister loves it. I got her the big Lebowski Kit:

http://www.amazon.com/Big-Lebowski-Kit- … 13&sr=8-31

Loved this movie.  There've been both Westerns and Coen brothers movies that I've admired aspects of but this is the first of either that I've thoroughly and unreservedly enjoyed.

Love the pseudo-Shakespearean Wild West dialog, love the performances (Bridges is amazing and Damon's transformation is almost equally impressive), love the thematic orchestral score and love the quirky extra touches (hello, bear man).  Fantastic film.

"You are not La Boeuf."  God, I love Bridges' deadpan delivery.

But yeah.  Dentistry, veterinary arts..... And medicine, on those humans that will sit still for it.  Bear Man rules.

I'm surprised at the amount of people telling me True Grit is a comedy. Though it's hard to write off the movie as a dark western (shades of which though there are). I think it's more accurate to say that the humor present in the film is laced with the Coen Brothers' subtle yet unmistakable idiosyncrasies which makes it unique among other westerns of it's ilk, if not from other entries in their filmography.

I had forgotten how much I love Jeff Bridges. The Big Lebowski was perhaps my favorite all-time comedy, and with rumors of a sequel on the horizon, I think maybe it's time for a Coen Brothers marathon.

Plenty of humorous moments in the film but there's no way I'd label it a comedy.

I was surprised and just a bit disturbed actually by how lots of people in the audience were getting a good chuckle out of some darker scenes that didn't seem meant for that effect.

I think that's more the delivery on the part of the Coen Brothers themselves. They have this uncanny ability to take situations that aren't inherently funny and wring at least a small amount of humor from them.