Starring Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem & Josh Brolin
Film
It’s 1980 and Ed Tom Bell (Jones) is the Sheriff of West Texas. He is nearing the end of his career and feeling a tad useless. Hunter Llewelyn Moss (Brolin) stumbles across a drug deal gone bad and finds an injured man who begs him for water. Moss takes him back to his trailer along with a bag with $2 million inside. But soon, Moss is chased away by strange men so he grabs the money and his wife, Carla Jean (Kelly Macdonald) and runs. Meanwhile murderous hitman Anton Chigurh (Bardem) has been hired to find the money and so begins his murderous rampage. Moss has hidden himself away in a motel and this is when he finds a tracking device with the money. But it’s too late. Chigurh finds him and they start a good old-fashioned firefight and Moss escapes across the border and ends up in a Mexican hospital. He meets Carson Wells (Woody Harrelson) who is also after the money. Chigurh is down but not out and isn’t one to give in. And so it goes…
Review
In our household we LOVE the Coen brothers’ films but sometimes they are just a smidgen too violent for this old softy. This is a pretty full on movie. But some say this is the best Coen brothers film with it’s black comedy, tension and extreme violence. With its Hitchcockian suspense and incredible cinematography this film is a worthy Best Picture winner. The performances are amazing, Tommy Lee Jones is always such a star and Bardem as the murderous hitman is terrifying. It’s an amazing movie just make sure you’ve got the stomach for it as there’s a lot of bloody violence which is not for everyone.
Food
There’s only one thing to chow down on while watching this film and it has to be authentic Chili from Texas and you can’t go past this Texas Chili recipe from Chili Pepper Madness! Like the film, it’s dark, rich and spicy. It’s sure to get you in the mood for film and food! Boom!
Note: Thanks to Mike from Chili Pepper Madness for permission to feature their fab image and recipe link.
No Country for old men trivia
- Budget – $25 million
- Chigurh’s weapon, the captive bolt pistol is usually used to kill cows before they’re made into meat! They use this weapon so bullets won’t go flying willy nilly.
- The editor of this film, Roderick Jaynes doesn’t exist. He is a pseudonym for the Coen brothers who have always edited their films themselves. The Guild doesn’t allow 2 editors to both be credited on the same film for some strange reason.
- Jaynes was nominated for an Oscar for Fargo and this film but has never won.
- The murder of the judge (that the Sheriff talks about ) is based on the shooting of real judge John Howland Wood who was killed by contract killer Charles Harrelson, Woody Harrelson’s father!!
- Bardem hates violence.
- Bardem was also the first Spanish actor to win an Oscar.
- Chigurh kills or tries to kill nearly every person he talks to in the film except for a few random characters.
Eat and watch with these fabbo movies:
* The Hurt Locker movie matched with a military meal
* Argo film with a Persian sweet
* The King’s Speech film paired with British food
Film and food 
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