True Grit (2010)
It’s not easy to innovate modern westerns.
Presentation:
The Coen brothers deliver a modern western that is pretty true to its roots but it still doesn’t reach the same glory of the iconic westerns despite having better technical prowess. Deakins cinematography is nice, but honestly a little invisible here and you probably wouldn’t even realize it was him. Hailee Steinfeld is likable but not as charismatic as other child prodigies of the past like Natalie Portman. She’s not bad here but the story demands a lot of emotional resonance with her character and she doesn’t particularly move audiences.
Conclusion:
A forgettable western that is good, but considering how epic most of them are, this one never achieves the same greatness even despite great performances from some of its cast. 3:10 to Yuma is also very similar but this one is more serious compared to the action oriented alternative, and is still not as good as The Assassination of Jesse James.
Recommendations
A love letter to westerns, save none for the audience.