NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN 2007

 NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (2007)

Component 1 Section B spectatorship and ideology

Coen brothers 

• Distinctive filmmakers within wider context of US contemporary production.
• Auteurs.
• This is based on a book of the same name by Cormac Mcarthy released in 2005. 

Overview

• US values and ideologies. 
• (further down the like) - our spectatorship and spectatorship issues




Differences between Gen Z and Millennials 

• Values
• Speech
• Views on certain topics - political views
• Internet
• Technology




Opening scene for No Country for Old Men 

• Accent and language used seems very Country/Western
• Voiceover
• Talks about older generation? Younger generation?
• Willing to die for the job - says younger generation wouldn’t
• Cant compare yourself to the old timers
• Thinks older generation is somewhat better?
• More respectful to the older generation than the younger
• Younger generation doesn’t carry a gun
• Likes to hear the story for the old timers - respectful of them
• His grandfather and Father both had the same job so he followed in their footsteps - idolises older generations
• Proud of what they do - legacy
• All work in the same area - western area
• Older generation ‘seems’ safer
• Mise-en-scene - cop car wouldn’t be there for the older generation




Classic western movie tropes

• Costume - not accurate to the day - stereotypical - cowboy hat, Pistols, the cowboy boots (spurs), bandanna/tie
• Gun showdowns - stand off - shoot- outs 
• Desert setting - lots of open space - isolated
• Saloon
• Village kind of setting
• ‘Outsider’ shows up and everyone goes quiet
• Whistling/Western background music
• Horses/Carts
• Orange tone and colour filters
• Dusty areas - old setting - mise-en-scene
• Moustaches
• Crime - away from the law (due to sparse setting) - freedom?
• Sheriff
• American Dream - work hard and get the life you want - making your fortune










Discovery scene - No Country for Old Men (when he finds the bag of money)




1. What classic tropes from westerns can you see on display here?




• Big vast empty desert space
• Stereotypical cowboy clothing
• Lots of guns - themes of death
• Drug culture - cocaine deal gone wrong
• Power hungry - he wanted shoot the last person standing - took the money
• Panning shots of the surrounding landscape - shows how isolated and alone they are
• Strong Western/Country accent
• No yelling - always speaking in monotone voices - no emotion
• Death is almost normalised as he didn’t seem surprised after coming across the scene
• Dust in the air from he ground
• Immorality - leaves guy bleeding out in the car to find the last man standing




Homework




The Coens use the idea of old vs new to display the different values and levels of respect each of the generations have. In the opening monologue he talks about how his Grandfather and his Father were sheriffs before him. They do this by making him talk about the fact that he followed in their footsteps shows that he has a great amount of respect for these people older than him. He seems to be proud of this ‘legacy’ they’ve created. He doesn’t seem to have as much respect for the younger generation as he talks about them not wearing a gun. He talks about this ‘boy’ he arrested for murder. He belittles this person into a ‘kid’ by using the term ‘boy’, showing how he talks down about the younger generation.




No Country for Old Men review Key Points

- Adapted by Joel and Ethan Coen from Cormac McCarthy’s novel

- The editor, Roderick Jaynes

- The script follows Mr. McCarthy’s novel almost scene for scene

- Your attention is completely and ecstatically absorbed

- The Coens have always used familiar elements of American pop culture and features of particular American landscapes to create elaborate and hermetic worlds

- Mr. Jones plays Ed Tom Bell, a world weary third-generation sheriff whose stoicism can barely mask his dismay at the tide of evil seeping into the world

- If “No Country for Old Men” were a simple face-off between the sheriff’s goodness and Chigurh’s undiluted evil, it would be a far stiffer, less entertaining picture

COMPONENT 1 SECTION B Spectatorship and ideology 

Outline the values and ideologies

Introduce wider contexts

Consider aspects of the western in the film

Focus on specific sequences - written outcomes

Production context:

• Coen brothers are distinctive film makers
• Tend to make indie films that appeal to niche audiences
• However this film has a MAINSTREAM audience 
• Echoes of particular values that may be traditional or threats to values across American society. 
• Ideology - belief and ideas, a way of life. 
• These old values are in transition, but the narrative doesn't clearly present a replacement of old values with a new connection. 

Wider context: 

• Our analysis of values and ideologies is framed within the production context and the cultural, social and historical context - 2008 and the 1980's
• The 1980's social, cultural and historical contexts formulate moments of comparison and reflection. For example the idea of the "old" pioneer which dominated classical westerns, the archetypal characters - hero, anti-hero, villain, helper and victim. 
• In Hollywood 1980, the western is pretty much dead. There is some nostalgia of the old pioneer. 
• American presidents - Reagan and Bush senior - Republicans
• Arms race still on - weapons deployed in Oxfordshire - British forces
• Hostilities - US and Middle East (Lebanese war in 1979)
• Iran hostage crisis at the end of the 1970's. 
• Widening gap: socially and economically - depressions in US and no public services. 
• Socially and culturally - a conservative era (fear of nuclear war) peace movement, swing to religion (tele-evangelism) and New Age movements. 

2007-1980's-2007

• Possible to argue that situating the story in the 1980's, from the standpoint of 2007 reflects some apprehensions and anxieties of the new millennium. 
• Uncertainty and moral ambiguity underlines the narrative and set the tone of unease from beginning to final frame. 
• Arguably, the brewing economic problems are projected back to the 1980's. 
• Although this decade is represented through the lens of moral chaos. 

US values and ideologies

• The moral landscape of the film has echoes of a more stable and noble time 0 but as the narrator/ sheriff notes, this time is "past".
• The nostalgic tone summed up in the idea of the old timers suggest that the present world inhabited by the Sheriff is fraught with evil, violence and blood, which signal moral chaos because they seem to be random. 
• This film is an exploration of how the American dream and the values it encapsulates have gone awry. 
• American built on innocent aspirations of the new settlers - new space with new values. 
• Opportunity, liberty and hard work were its values. 

Old vs new / echoes of western

• The narrative unfold in an essentially urban landscape, with strong echoes of the Wild West - the vast and barren land, as well as the idea of the border found in classic westerns.
• Visual codes - iconography: dress code, props, landscape and space, echo rural space of the west. 
• There are frequent references to crossing spaces - the border of the US and Mexico which Moss later travels. 
• Old world - dignity and patriotism. 

Ambiguous values

• The unstable sense of an underlying force for good is overthrown for three reasons: 1. Llewelyn Moss is not entirely good or bad, bad we align ourselves with him. 2. Chigurh - a random force of evil. 3. Ellis represents how unprepared his generation is for the challenges of contemporary crime and violence. 

COIN SEQUENCE - TEXACO STATION

• Old man who serves Chigurh - inherited the job and house from his wife's father.
• The idea that he represents the morality of a more certain past with order and routine. 
• Chigurh wants him to "call it" -  determine an outcome on the random probability of a coin toss - this symbolises the chaotic avenue that is alien to the man and his generation. 
• Over the shoulder shots - never together in the same shot - communicates that they don't share the space of the cinematic frame because they don't share the same values (old vs new). 
• Static shots, ambiguity. Tension, spectatorship. 
• The counter in the shot seven as a visual and representative division between each other. 

The Texaco Station "coin sequence" holds an intense emblematic feel of the contrast between old and new. The old man who serves Chigurh inherited his career and house from his wife's father; there is an idea that he represents the morality of a more certain past with order and routine. Chigurh decides to do a coin toss, there is no apparent reason or outcome to the coin toss, the random probability symbolises the chaotic nature that is alien to the man and his generation. There are over the shoulder shots accompanied when each character is speaking, they are never together in the same shot - this communicates that they don't share the space of the cinematic frame because they don't share the same values, the old and the new generation. The over the shoulder shots serve as a boundary between them, breaking each other apart as completely different opinions, even the counter in the shot is a visual and representative division between each other. Furthermore, the shots are static, emphasising the ambiguity of the whole movie and the deceptive character of Chigurh, of course, tension is building in the spectators as we know that Chigurh is violent and corrupt, the man is clueless of Chigurh's past, making the coin toss even more intense. Until the end of the scene, the spectatorship may believe that the coin toss is a matter of life or death for the innocent man, however, the coin is symbolic of the distance between them, random probability and the unknown of the new generation has now been introduced into the life of a certain man of the older generation. 

CONTEXT - Second coin toss

- Jean is in black, back from mothers funeral.

- Mise en scene - black attire means she blends into background as she sits down at the table - but the light shines on her face.

- Open window - evil force has come in - Chigurh. 

- When she opens the other door he is sitting down. 

- Angel of death - open window as a motif. 

- She expected hi to come for her / the money.

- Noir elements. 

- Cut to balanced shot - eye level with spectator. 

- Ambivalence.

- Lighting is instrumental. 

- The bed acts as the distance and division between their values. 

- She has just buried her mother - the older generation has died. 

-

- Framing and composition creates a fictional cinematic world. 

- slow pace editing and long takes - fear and anticipation.

- More agency in her position. 

COMPARISON - Old man coin toss / Jean 

Similarities:

1. The division of values.
2. Both never in the same cinematic frame, shot reverse shot. 
3. Barrier between Chigurh and the other - bed, counter.  

Differences:

1. Power balance is contrasted within the two scenes. 
2. Jean continues the back and forth conversation. 
3. How lighting is used as an instrument to reflect an evil force and an innocent person. Chigurh lurking the shadows, looses his aggression and dominance compared to the old man. Perhaps can have a dual meaning, the shadows representing ambiguity and how spectatorship have no clue to where this is going. Symbolism, colour scheme. Noir elements brought in by the Cohen brothers, exploiting moral darkness. 

COMPARE THE TWO "COIN TOSS" SEQUENCES:

"No Country for Old Men" exploits a range of values and ideologies, the division between the old generation and new, moral principles and certainly ambiguous values. The two "coin toss" sequences certainly develops these ideologies through film form, cinematic frame and shot type reflects the differences in opinions between Chigurh and the other characters that face his unapparent outcome of his coin toss. However, lighting is used instrumentally to depict a role reversal and the representation of women to hold more agency than the chaotic character of Chigurh. Symbolism is evident in order to expand on this major contrast of innocence and random evil. 

Firstly, the similarities between the two coin tosses reflect a purpose; the variance of morals. As we can see, in both scenes, Chigurh and his "opponent" are never in the same frame, the reverse shots are used instead - the Cohen brothers successfully reflect this division of values by showcasing how innocence and evil can never intertwine. Not only shot type portrays this idea but also physical objects in the scene, in the Texaco station a counter serves as a physical barrier between the old man and Chigurh, a bed used in the coin toss with Jean. This emblematic use of objects serves an actual separation between the characters and their standards. There is no surprise that Jean and the old man differ from Chigurh in many ways, these "barriers" reflect this. Additionally, both scenes are static and extremely slow paced, of course, this increases the tension in the scenes, also implying the unexpected nature of Chigurh, and the true impermanence of his choices, highlighting the theme of ambivalence. Chigurh is a chaotic avenue in both scenes, ultimately, Jean and the old man respond in a similar way of confusion to his anomalous ways; the framing and composition creates a fictional cinematic world, representing both the innocent characters to be alone in their thoughts, their choice of words could take them down a variety of paths due to Chigurh's randomness, so a confused response serves a "safer" route. 

As much as the similarities in both sequences show Jean and the old man to be "in the same boat", the differences actually highlight the two individuals to be majorly contrasted. To To begin with, the instrumental use of lighting in the second coin toss creates far more meaning - In the first coin toss, it is day time with natural lighting, danger is less expected due to the light of day and its obvious reveal of anything suspicious. Although it is still day in the second toss, there are low-key noir elements used instead; the light shines on Jean's face while Chigurh is in the shadows of the corner of the room. This noir lighting can have a dual meaning, the ambiguity of Chigurh and his irrational decisions by remaining a random force of evil in the shadows, or the lack of aggression and dominance he holds compared to Jean's agency. Jean is slightly more elevated while he sits on an arm chair in a relaxed position, perhaps here is a power sift compared to the Texaco sequence. Jean is not clueless unlike the old man, she has been through an extremely rough time, the death of her husband and mother, in fact she was "expecting" his arrival at some point. In fact, Jean is not an old timer, there is a shift in emphasis compared to the first coin toss; instead of a generational difference causing the confrontation, the difference is now moral investment. 

VALUES AND IDEOLOGIES

Ideologies can be thought of as the main messages conveyed by a film as well as those which inform it. Commonly mainstream cinema presents dominant ideologies, but this doesn't necessarily mean that the film accepts the.

Values are closely linked to a way of life - thus we live out or practice a way of life which reflects our system of belief. 

Benjamin Franklin 

Values and ideologies entrenched in American history, origins, Founding Fathers.

Liberty, freedom - individuals and nation (former colony)

Running thread across psych of American society - "Dream"

Contradictory ideas - materialistic vs cultural and intellectual - linked to ideas about freedom/liberty/success

Literature and drama rehearse these ideas

Often writers and filmmakers critique American values. 

PECTATORSHIP

Spectatorship focuses on how we view, interact and make sense of what is on the screen.

It centres the focus on emotions, pleasures, responses/reactions. 

Types of responses:

Emotional - drama/romance

Intellectual - engage with ideas

Visceral - cathartic energy 

As spectators do we have dynamic interaction with the narrative, resolution and characters. Anticipation.

Active spectatorship is individuals engaging, questioning and being alert with each situation expressed. 

Passive spectators allow events to wash over and deny any curiosity. 

Slow paced editing linked very strategically to how we should be feeling throughout the movie as spectators, to try and understand the moral confusion in terms of the values and ideologies. 

Audience is a demographical profile and what it is made up of, spectatorship is the experience and responses of watching a film. Breaking down an audience is a marketing perspective. 

Spectatorship also has alignment, active spectators are commonly aligned or take sides with a character, adopting a particular point of view, also putting yourself in their position to understand the predicament in their perspective. Alignment is something that almost assists the enjoyment of a film, the ability to indulge yourself in a character and try to mentally replicate their opinions is a true sign of dynamic interaction. 

In film studies, there is a difference between an audience and spectatorship: an audience is a demographical profile made by studios in order to break down marketing perspectives and estimate the success of a film, spectatorship regards an in-depth focus on how we view, interact and make sense of what we see in film. Spectatorship is certainly significant, for the passive viewer or the active viewer, as human individuals, we enrich ourselves with what we see and hear on a daily basis, naturally we have a response to these experiences. Spectatorship regarding film entails an interaction with visual stimulus, catalysing emotions, pleasure and all sorts of reactions. It is common for the active spectator (viewers that analyse what they witness in far more detail than the average passive spectator) to have the main three responses to sequences in films; emotional, usually from drama's or romances, intellectual, being able to engage with ideas and opinions and lastly visceral, excitement and cathartic energy. These three responses form the bases of a spectators dynamic interaction with a narrative, resolution and characters, collaborating to form the anticipation and predictive thoughts an active viewer contains. Spectatorship is a key theoretical approach to the analysis of films as a response is the main desire of a director, of course, presenting values and ideologies through film form is also a want for a director, however, the satisfaction of drawing out an emotion serves a great importance in the decisions made by a director. Every decision made is purposeful, especially vital for those in the audience who enjoy to engage. Alignment is a good example of this, active spectators commonly align or take sides with a character, adopting a particular point of view, deliberately putting themselves in the position of their chosen character in order to understand the "predicament" or "enigma" in their perspective. Alignment is certainly something that contributes to the enjoyment of a film, I personally find alignment to be something that occurs naturally within me when watching a film, strangely enough, I find myself aligning with antagonists and villains, simply due to empathy and my want to understand their deeper meaning for their actions. Overall, spectatorship is worthy of attention, the study of spectatorship is fascinating, perhaps as film enthusiasts we focus to heavily on elements and film form, instead of challenging ourselves with the reactions these elements create, every film choice is done for a reason, understanding the interior motive truly comes down to the spectators and opinions we organically generate. 

I believe that the Texaco Coin sequence is a quintessential moment in No Country For Old Men when it comes to spectatorship; the sequence itself dives into a variety of values and ideologies placed by the directors choices of film form and elements, as spectators, these visual triggers stimulate different responses. The Texaco Station "coin sequence" holds an intense emblematic feel of the contrast between old and new. The old man who serves Chigurh inherited his career and house from his wife's father; there is an idea that he represents the morality of a more certain past with order and routine. Chigurh decides to do a coin toss, there is no apparent reason or outcome to the coin toss, the random probability symbolises the chaotic nature that is alien to the man and his generation. As an audience we inherently side with the old man, although his "morals" are representative of a traditional time; Chirgurh's reckless nature presented earlier in the film provide a standpoint for spectators, we recognise his chaos and don't trust his actions, a visceral response is expected, the tension from the unknown.  As the scene continues, multiple elements of mise-en-scene highlight this moral divide between the two characters; the counter itself serves as an emblematic barrier between the integration of their values, it separates them physically and mentally. Perhaps an active and charismatic spectator would notice this symbol that is in fact a repeated motif in all of Chigurh's immoral games, I would assume this requires an intellectual response in order to be truly understood, it could be argued that a spectators personal allignment with a character interferes with their ability pick up certain hints that do have a deeper meaning. 

A film is much like a comprehension task in English language, a creation is given to you, the answers are all there, predictable or truly a trouble to find; your brain naturally asks questions that you desire to be answered while watching a film, perhaps it is the intellectual level of spectatorship that defines our ability to best  anticipate what's to come and most importantly... how we react.