True Grit

"That didn't pan out."

Joel and Ethan Coen are reunited with The Dude himself for a remake of True Grit.  (As with Brighton Rock the directors have contended that they have returned to the original novel for a fresh look at the source material rather than directly remaking the first cinematic take).
Hailee Steinfeld plays Mattie Ross, an intelligent and determined 14 year old out to avenge her father's death.  Asking the sheriff for advice she is pointed in the direction of Rueben 'Rooster' Cogburn, and man of "true grit" - an ageing, belligerent Ranger seemingly as likely to take up the trail as to go sober.  But there is another Ranger already on the case and keen to get his man - La Boeuf (Matt Damon).
This unlikely trio are the centre of the film around whom other characters briefly flit around the periphery.  Due to this blink-and-you'll-miss-them nature, the film relies heavily of the chemistry and charisma of these three and, although each puts in a solid performance, there is nothing terribly remarkable about them.  That this should be the case despite their surroundings and situation is indicative of the overriding problem with the film.  It feels episodic, it is strangely bland - everything about the film feels solid but a bit lacklustre - and while the script offers a few moments of comedy, the rest of the film falls rather flat.  It just feels rather lightweight.
If there is one element of the script in particular which lends itself to humour it is the fact that, on first viewing, you will probably not catch it all.  While Mattie is well-spoken, clear and concise, Rooster is a verbose, opinionated drunk and almost completely unintelligible at times, and the addition of La Boeuf's acquired speech impediment only increases the difficulty.

Jeff Bridges is a committed, uncompromising Rooster, Hailee Steinfeld a confident and engaging Mattie, and Matt Damon provides some excellent broad comedy but I found the cameo performers more convincing and enjoyable.  Barry Pepper puts in a great turn as Lucky Ned Pepper, Josh Brolin undergoes a great vocal change as Tom Chaney and Domhnall Gleeson (Moon) probably delivers the most moving performance in the film.

The screenplay feels a little undecided.  Some of the language feels a little forced and while Rooster and La Boeuf get some good lines most go to the smaller roles and, as their appearances are brief, this leaves the script feeling a little bare.
The film looks glorious in places, Roger Deakins capturing the sparse American scenery wonderfully just as he did in No Country for Old Men, but there are a couple of moments where the editing choices seem quite strange and it doesn't look as classy as I expected.  There is something about it that feels a little slipshod, a little slung together and the natural, quirky stylings of the Coen brothers are replaced by an odd ambiguity.

I don't think True Grit will stay with me for long and I wouldn't rush to watch it again to remind myself - 7/10