Favorite Films of All Time, No. 3

 


In 2022 I'm revisiting my favorite films of all time, doing a countdown of the Top 50 throughout the year. Check back each Friday for the latest installment in the countdown of films, which include releases through 2019. Agree? Disagree? Have a thought on the choice? Be sure to share in the comments below!

Ed Tom Bell: I was sheriff of this county when I was twenty-five years old. Hard to believe. My grandfather was a lawman; father too. Me and him was sheriffs at the same time; him up in Plano and me out here. I think he's pretty proud of that. I know I was. Some of the old time sheriffs never even wore a gun. A lotta folks find that hard to believe. Jim Scarborough'd never carried one; that's the younger Jim. Gaston Boykins wouldn't wear one up in Comanche County. I always liked to hear about the oldtimers. Never missed a chance to do so. You can't help but compare yourself against the oldtimers. Can't help but wonder how they would have operated these times. There was this boy I sent to the 'lectric chair at Huntsville Hill here a while back. My arrest and my testimony. He killt a fourteen-year-old girl. Papers said it was a crime of passion but he told me there wasn't any passion to it. Told me that he'd been planning to kill somebody for about as long as he could remember. Said that if they turned him out he'd do it again. Said he knew he was going to hell. "Be there in about fifteen minutes". I don't know what to make of that. I sure don't. The crime you see now, it's hard to even take its measure. It's not that I'm afraid of it. I always knew you had to be willing to die to even do this job. But, I don't want to push my chips forward and go out and meet something I don't understand. A man would have to put his soul at hazard. He'd have to say, "O.K., I'll be part of this world."

No Country for Old Men (2007)
Starring: Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, and Tommy Lee Jones
Director: Joel and Ethan Coen
About: I've mentioned before on the countdown my affinity for The Coen Brothers. I had that affinity long before I saw this film, but it's easy to say this film cemented that love and produced one of the most amazing films I'd ever seen. The acting, the writing and the direction are incredible. That's easily the reason it won Best Picture. The way the Coen Brothers use sound. The way they craft the story. I've seen it many times and I always discover something new. But, for me, it's the depth of story and the way it produces thought and emotion that elevates the connection to a film. That's certainly the case for No Country for Old Men, which is a fascinating exploration of the nature of evil. We see the events presented, as does Ed Tom Bell. And we're forced to reconcile our beliefs with what we see, like Ed Tom Bell. His choice is heart-breaking, as he resigns from a world he can no longer understand. He's no longer willing to say, "OK, I'll be part of this world." The question the film asks is if we feel the same. I love the film and I love to teach the film, opening the discussion around this issue. That's the power of art. It was easy to land this film in my Top 3.

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