I consider the Coen Brothers filmmaking to be the most representative of my generation (X). They don’t hit you over the head with morality or blow you away with CGI and special effects. They are first and foremost storytellers, most often for the sake of the yarn and little else, and I think that puts them in a unique category in American filmography.
My family shares an affinity for movies, which is to say we sit around on our asses quite a bit. Outside of my friend Andrew, who works as a documentary producer, I don’t know anyone that watches more movies than my sister, mom and I. Recently, I made it a point to watch every movie directed and produced by the Coens.
Of course, I’d already seen many of their mainstream and cult hits like Fargo, The Big Lebowski, O’ Brother Where Art Thou?, No Country for Old Men and Burn After Reading. But their filmography extends much deeper with hidden gems like The Hudsucker Proxy, The Man Who Wasn’t There, Barton Fink and Blood Simple.
In addition to strong visual style and crisp dialogue, these movies share a number of familiar and effective plot devices. I’m not sure ‘plot device’ truly captures the storytelling mechanics listed below, but they undeniably form the pillars of the Coens’ film construction.
1. MacGuffins: There’s usually one object of desire that advances Coens films. In Lebowski, it’s Mrs. Lebowski. In No Country, it’s the briefcase. In Barton Fink, it’s the script. In O’ Brother it’s the treasure. But my favorite is the hula-hoop in Hudsucker. This classic reveal finds a benign plastic circle preternaturally rolling its way to a pair of swinging hips.
(ED: I had to look up MacGuffins. I was going to use ‘Things that Are Important’ but it didn’t sound as classy)
2. The Relationship Between Good, Evil and Fate: No Country for Old Men is one of the best and most recent examples. Audiences were drawn in by Anton Chigurh, the psychotic yet nuanced villain in pursuit of stolen drug money. But his motives are never fully developed. Beyond implicit evil, he may consider himself an agent of death, and in that role find purpose.
It’s interesting to compare the motives of Chigurh and Heath Ledger’s Joker in The Dark Knight (by Christopher Nolan). Whereby the Joker uses chance to introduce chaos, I believe Chirgurh uses it to the opposite effect — to demonstrate the inevitability of fate and predestination. But the better comparison might be Harvey Dent after he transforms into Two Face.
As a DA, Dent feels he can affect change in the world. After his encounter with the joker, he seems resigned to a predetermined fate. Here we see two chracters in Chirgurh and Dent that have seemingly accepted their destiny, and use chance to not only guide their decisions but make sense of their true nature.
(Ed: I got a little lost in that last paragraph but it’s still interesting to think about)
3. Irony (SPOILERS): This also ties into the concept of fate, but for the purpose of distinction, let’s think of Coens’ Brand Irony as the unseen cause and effect of human interaction, which tends to drive an ironic plot twist.
Frances McDormand’s character in Burn After Reading is not evil by design, but still sets forth a chain of events that leads to the death of two coworkers and former CIA agent Osborne Cox (another quirky performance by John Malkovich). McDormand is a frequent muse for the Coens, with her characters often coloring the irony of life. Another example is the good natured Abby in Blood Simple, whose infedility leads to a similar body count and a confusing but entertaining mess of whodunnit.
Although her role as an overly ambitious and cheating wife in The Man Who Wasn’t There doesn’t fall into this category (however, one could argue her infidelity once again sparks the core chain of events), it’s her co-star that walks the path of irony. In his underrated role as Ed Crane, Billy Bob Thorton’s protagonist is a wall flower whose inaction, and then action, results in a similar outcome.
But the pendalum doesn’t always swing towards evil. Through the seemingly ill-fated actions of likeable lunkhead Norville Barnes (Tim Robbins) in Hudsucker, the main protaganist finds love and meaning while the villian is vanquished. The same can be said for Everett (George Clooney) in O’ Brother, as well as The Dude (Jeff Bridges) in Lebowski.
4. Deus ex machina (SPOILERS): One thing I love about the Coens is that their storytelling isn’t stale and formulaic. They don’t mind calling on the Hand of God (or higher powers) to progress the plot.
This one doesn’t need a lot of explanation. It’s the apperance of Waring Hudsucker moments before Norville hits the pavement in Hudsucker. It’s the flood that washes away the authorities and uncovers the wedding ring in O’ Brother. Although they don’t rely on higher powers often, they do so with great effect, and without leaving the audience feeling cheated.
5. Frances McDormand: Yeah, she’s not really a plot device but she’s a pillar of the Coens film making. Like many people, my first impression of the Coens was Fargo. Although William H. Macy was perfect as the bumbling Jerry, it was McDormand’s protagonist Marge that really carried the film. Her nuanced performance, playing the light side of Anton Chigurh if you will (sans coin flips), showed how much she and the Coens had grown since Blood Simple.
While I don’t like the mental image of my sweet Marge hopping on Harry’s chair in Burn, she once again brings the imperfections of the human condition into perfect focus onscreen.
(Ed: This will probably make some die hard Coen fans barf, but I haven’t seen Raising Arizona in its entirety, nor have I seen Intolerably Curelty or Ladykillers. They’re next on my list. Feel free to share your insights on those movies in the comments.)
Lost Movie Vault: The Thing
This is not Bruce Jenner during his face lift.
For those of you born before this date in 1980, you may not know Kurt Russell. Maybe you’ve seen him in shitty re-runs of Executive Decision, 3,000 Miles to Graceland or Death Proof. Or caught Escape from L.A. on Showtime and thought, well, that’s an interesting concept.
If you don’t know, allow me to educate: Kurt Russell was the FUCKING MAN for a decade. Escape from New York. Big Trouble in Little China. Tango & Cash. Backdraft. Tombstone (You tell ‘em I’M coming… and hell’s coming with me). In the diluted and highly over-rated Arnold and Sly action era, Russell offered a tongue-in-cheek alternative in the on-screen ass-kicking business. His work, particularly in Little China, paved the way for the Bruce Campbell horror-comedy genre. If you don’t know Bruce Campbell, just leave now.
I left out one important contribution. Arguably Russell’s best work, as well as that of his director, John Carpenter. The single-most terrifying movie of its time, and a film that’s aged far better than anything produced before the turn of the century: The Thing.
If you’re 30, chances are you’ve seen The Thing. And you probably remember almost pissing your pants the first time you saw it. The Thing is a masterpiece of story-telling, set design, special effects, pacing and character acting, not only by Russell, but his counterparts who played the last survivors of a doomed scientific and military outpost in the Antarctic.
As I lay dying of H1N1 this weekend (and missing one of my favorite holidays of the year), most of the broadcast, cable and movie channels were running horror movie marathons. Some great DVR material was on repeat for 24 hours: Halloween (another Carpenter masterpiece), Friday the 13th, Hellraiser, Evil Dead, Army of Darkness, The Omen, The Exorcist, A Nightmare on Elm Street and a plethora of Romero’s cult classics.
But amidst these epic contributions, I was forced to rent The Thing over iTunes. For shame, network television, for shame.
If you’re burnt on the over-produced, over-hyped, gore-drenched remakes being pumped out by the Rob Zombies of the world, treat yourself to a night with The Thing. And when you realize you’re a Russell or Carpenter fan, check out Little China, The Fog or Christine.
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Tagged arnold schwarzenegger, Films, Horror, Kurt Russell, Movies, sylvester stallone, The Thing