A Horse Opera Renaissance

 From Black Horse Extra issue 21

"Just two issues ago, the Extra featured a Hoofprints item from reader Leigh Alver, of Perth, Australia. It said, in part, "I love a good western, mostly in the gritty style with the imperfect hero who is faced with tough decisions and short odds. I see debate touches on whether the western can rise to (mass) popularity again, and the answer is, who knows? .... I think a good story well told will find a readership that extends beyond its genre. My favourite of all favourite westerns is True Grit, not because it is a western but because it is a great, great story, with wonderfully drawn characters, a super plot (quest) and reads off the page like music to the ear – it is an absolute joy. In fact, I would put it up there with the great classics like Moby Dick and Treasure Island, and they are almost without peer as stories of individual character and adventure...."   Since then, Charles Portis's True Grit has appeared in its second movie version.  GARY DOBBS, aka BHW author JACK MARTIN, often himself on-screen as an actor, brings us some thoughts on the new film's remarkable reception, and the chance it might offer...." FIND THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

TRUE GRIT OSCAR FOR BEST PICTURE - THAT'LL BE THE DAY

susan King LA TIMES INSIDER :

John Ford may have been the greatest director of westerns, but none of his four directing Oscars were for his sagebrush sagas. Only his classic 1939 "Stagecoach" and 1963's "How the West Was Won" — on which Ford was one of three directors — were nominated for the best picture Academy Award. Even his 1956 masterwork, "The Searchers," a complex story of a Civil War vet's obsessive quest for his niece captured by Indians, failed to receive an Oscar nomination.

"People at this time of year like to talk about Oscar snubs," said Richard Jewell, a film professor at the USC School of Cinematic Arts who teaches a class on the western genre. "The fact that they gave the best picture award that year to 'Around the World in 80 Days,' a film that we can't watch anymore, and didn't give a single nomination or award to 'The Searchers' or a nomination to John Wayne for a performance which is one of the most powerful performances in the history of movies, it is just a travesty."

Only three traditional westerns, 1931's "Cimarron," 1990's "Dances With Wolves" and 1992's "Unforgiven" have won the best picture Oscar. And only a handful more have received best picture nominations, including 1952's "High Noon," 1953's "Shane," 1969's "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and now Joel and Ethan Coen's revisionist "True Grit." (The Coens' 2007 best picture winner "No Country for Old Men" was set in the modern West.)

The original 1969 "True Grit" received two nominations — lead actor for John Wayne, who won the Oscar, and best song. Seminal westerns such as Howard Hawks' 1948 "Red River" and 1959's "Rio Bravo," Sam Peckinpah's 1969 "The Wild Bunch," as well as Ford flicks including 1946's "My Darling Clementine," 1948's "Fort Apache," 1949's "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" and 1950's "Rio Grande" didn't earn best picture nods.

"The thing is for so many years, westerns were primarily B pictures," explained Turner Classic Movies host and Oscar historian Robert Osborne.
"They were not terribly important. … Even in their time they were not that acknowledged or they weren't revered really until years later when we all started looking back on those films. In those days they were popular movies, but they weren't taken that seriously. It's like Orson Welles, he was never appreciated when he was doing his movies."
But it didn't start out that way. Jewell points out the genre was taken seriously in the silent era of the 1920s with the success of such epics as Ford's "The Iron Horse" and James Cruze's "The Covered Wagon." And that continued in the academy's infancy.
Though "Cimarron" took the best picture Oscar in 1931, it was a box-office failure, losing about half a million dollars — a huge amount during the Depression.
"They stopped making the big A westerns for a while," Jewell said, "though they continued an avalanche of these B pictures. There was a sense that these films were basically kiddie films. … I think the sense of the genre being unsophisticated that you don't give awards to coalesced during that time and continued for years after."
Jewell says perceptions about the genre began to change with the development of film studies at universities and the critical acclaim these movies received from New Wave filmmakers like François Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard. " I think all of a sudden when you get that kind of attention from filmmakers saying 'Hey, these are great movies! What is wrong with you people?' The ironic thing is by that time, the genre started to decline."
Though Jewell personally regarded the Coens' "True Grit" as just "OK," he said he wasn't surprised by its success. (It was nominated for a total of 10 Oscars and has made more than $160 million at the U.S. box office.) "There are so few westerns made that this kind of cloud of nostalgia has enveloped the genre," he said. "Whoever is brave enough to make a big western nowadays, they are going to get a lot of attention."

True Grit storming UK box office

True Grit is doing great business in UK cinemas, repeating it's US run though it has been kept off the top spot by a group of animated gnomes. True Grit went straight into the UK film charts at number four, one place ahead of the new Yogi the Bear movie. Grit's total takings for its opening weekend stand at an impressive £1.84 million.

This bodes well for the western as a whole - only a year ago critics were saying that the Coen's take on True Grit would be a flop, that there was no longer an audience for films like this, that only children went to the cinema. However an independent cinema survey has reported a spike in attendances by patrons over thirty years of age.

Maybe adults don't really go to the cinema these days because there are very few films we really want to see. Maybe if more movies like True Grit were produced then we'd be flooding the cinemas on a regular basis. Time to put away the CGI and reintroduce the acting and writing methinks.

Link - a horse opera renaissance  ?

TRUE GRIT 2010/TRUE GRIT 1969 - WHICH HAS THE MOST GRIT?

There are many aspects of the new True Grit that are superior to the 1969 original - Matt Damon for one is far better than Glen Campbell in the Texas Ranger role, but to be fair I bet Damon would be a flop belting out Rhinestone Cowboy. I've now seen the Coen's True Grit three times and whilst I still think the John Wayne classic is the better of the two, I do think it's the best western in years. Probably since Clint Eastwood's The Unforgiven.

For one thing those Coen boys are cinematic geniuses and if you don't believe me go and watch Fargo or No Country for Old Men, or Oh Brother Where art Thou or The Big Lebowski. And for another the original source novel by Charles Portis allows for not only a strong female character but a strong child character all in one package, which is something that appeals to the modern audience and gives this grim and gritty story a surreal edge that is almost fairy tale. The character of Rooster Cogburn is the quintessential western loner but for all his gruffness he has a heart and that heart is touched by the little girl who hires him to find her father's killer. And Matt Damon's turn as the Texas Ranger gives us the character we always should have had, the handsome, brave but hot headed cowboy.

For well over a year now I've been writing about this movie, trawling magazines, newspapers and the net for any news and I've, after my initial horror that they were re-making yet another classic, had a good feeling about this one. And I'm as pleased as punch that the film is taking the box office by storm. This is something I've always wanted - the western back at the top again.

It was always going to be difficult for me to accept anyone else other than John Wayne as Rooster - Wayne is a lifelong hero of mine and alongside Clint Eastwood probably my favourite western actor of all. But I do think Jeff Bridges was brilliant and his performance is spot on but for me Wayne had that edge. I also think Wayne's Rooster was a far tougher character for all the darkness of the new version. And the early court room scenes are far better in the Wayne version, as was that shoot out when Rooster gallops towards the bad guys and takes them all on.

The language used in the new True Grit is far more poetic than in the original movie and far closer to the source novel but for all that it is Wayne's version that still wins out. If the Wayne movie had never existed and this was the first version of the novel it would be hard to find fault with it. And indeed as it stands it is a fine movie and seems to be dragging western fans and more importantly general movie goers into the cinema.

But the film is not the vast improvement on the original that many people seem to claim - Barry Pepper seems to be channelling Robert Duvall in his performance as Lucky Ned Pepper, even getting the cadence in his voice in places. And the scene in the new version where Rooster tells Pepper to do what he likes with the girl doesn't really work. In the original we had already been told that Pepper doesn't kill without good reason and yet this is missing from the remake so when Rooster tries his bluff it just doesn't seem right. The horse trading scene in the remake is also not as well done as the original which was one of the better comedic scenes in the entire movie. The film has been called a retelling rather than a remake, but that's just not true. It's a remake and nothing more - there are one or two scenes that weren't in the original but these do not constitute enough new material to qualify as a retelling.

Nevertheless True Grit 2010 is an excellent western and an excellent movie, refreshing in these days of too much CGI and too little story, but the film is riding on the wave of its freshness and I doubt that those that proclaim it better than the original will have the same opinion in say a year or two.  The new version is superior in many ways but overall, as a movie, it is not quite as good. And whilst Jeff Bridges is excellent it must be remembered that no one had the gravitas of John Wayne who was actually quite ill when he made the original True Grit. It's,for some reason, become trendy to knock John Wayne, to say the actor always played himself, but that's just not true. Take The Searchers for instance which represents to me and many others the best performance by any actor in any western ever and a far darker portrayal of the anti-hero than anyone's ever managed, including Jeff Bridges' version of old Rooster.

However at the end of the day the new True Grit is an excellent movie and no one could be more pleased than me at its success. I hope it leads to other westerns but if anyone else fancies remaking a classic Wayne movie then please keep your hands off The Searchers.

True Grit revitalises the western genre for the screen

It may not be as good as the original but it's great news that the new True Grit is doing excellent business at the box office and is approaching blockbuster status - (From The Baltimore Sun) The box-office news this week is that the Coen Bros.' deliciously literate "True Grit" is acquiring blockbuster status. It's an amazing victory for a Western that is centered not just on character but on language -- on personality and values as expressed through formal period diction (courtesy of original novelist Charles Portis). The movie brings you into a world in which a young heroine can achieve power partly because of her manner of speech. 14-year-old Mattie Ross expresses rectitude and strength with a verbal intensity that's sometimes funny and sometimes even scary. Hailee Steinfeld is a wonderment in the role (she was thirteen when she played it) -- and apparently, young men as well as young women can identify with her.

This is great news for the western genre - of course we've known it all along but westerns are cool again.

Wild West eMonday - True Grit 2010

The most hyped western in recent years finally arrives on the big screen and was it worth the wait? Well - yes and no. At times the movie almost feels like a scene for scene remake of the John Wayne classic which was not something I was expecting. Huge chunks of dialogue are presented word for word from the original movie, and not all of them were in the original novel. The Coen Brothers constantly stated that they had not seen the Wayne classic for a great many years and were going to use the Charles Portis novel as their inspiration. Well if that's true it just shows how faithful Wayne's movie was to the original novel. And as much as I enjoyed this movie I still think John Wayne is the definitive Rooster Cogburn and that the 1969 True Grit, for all its faults, is the definitive True Grit.

The one and only true original

Jeff Bridges is superb as Rooster Cogburn and his portrayal is significantly different from Wayne's but the fact that he's given much of the dialogue first spoken by Wayne means that he comes across as someone doing an impression of the biggest western icon of them all. The scene towards the end where he takes the reins in his teeth and charges at the bad guys, yelling "Fill your hands you sons-of-a-bitch," was a mistake given that the scene is so well known from the Wayne classic it's hard to take this seriously and the viewer knows what the outcome will be. Likewise when Rooster rides Little Blackie to his death trying to get Mattie to a doctor after she's been bitten by a rattler. Both of these scenes were much more effective in the original movie.

Still it is an excellent film but I can't help feeling a little let down - maybe if the viewer doesn't know the Wayne movie they will enjoy it more but then most of the core audience for this movie will know that Wayne film inside out. And after the first few frames its like watching the old movie all over again, even if this film is slightly darker in tone. Where this film does trump the original is in the performance of both Hailee Steinfield and Matt Damon who are both far superior to the original actors. But don't expect too much from Josh Brolin since his role is minuscule and I really can't fault Jeff Bridges but man he ain't John Wayne.


The ending of this film perfectly mirrors the original novel and we see a mature Mattie Ross meeting Cole Younger and Frank James. She hasn't mellowed in her old age and calls them, trash. I watched this film on a DVD screener and I'll still be visiting the cinema when it opens over here, if only for the novelty of seeing a western on the big screen and the Coen's certainly have a feel for the genre, but I can't help feeling that they were ill advised with this remake and should have tackled an original story. True Grit 2010 is a great movie but it's not significantly different from the John Wayne original.

And at the end of the day - the duke kicks the dude's arse.


NEXT - We have an original western short story, Melanie by Edward A Grainger. And believe me you won't want to miss this one.

The odds of an Oscar win for True Grit 2010 improve

In this morning's roundup of Oscar news 'n' notes from around the web, "True Grit" moves up the charts, but "Social Network" keeps winning.

"The Social Network" is hanging onto its title as the critics' darling, taking home the top prize from the Washington, D.C. Area Film Critics Association, one of the first of a great many critics groups that'll be announcing over the next month. "Social Network," reports Kris Tapley in an advance look at the winners, won for picture, director and screenplay, while Colin Firth won for Best Actor, Jennifer Lawrence for Best Actress, and Christian Bale and Melissa Leo from "The Fighter" took both supporting prizes. But "Inception" won the most awards, four. Lawrence and maybe Leo could be considered slight surprises; everything else was expected. (In Contention).

FULL STORY AT THE ODDS

True Grit 2010 won't hit UK cinemas until Jan 2011

The official Facebook page for the new True Grit has placed the release date for 2011 which will disappoint UK western fans who were hoping the date would be brought forward as was the case with the American release.

This seems a stupid move in these days of internet film piracy. The film will be available on illegal file sharing sites before it is even in UK cinemas - ahh well, the wisdom of the film studios.

True Grit 2010 - first review and it's a good one

Thanks to John Sinclair for the nod on this - the first review can be found HERE

"Another Coen's masterpiece." Yippie!!!!

True Grit may spawn a sequel

The Coen's re-make of True Grit hasn't hit cinema screens yet but Joel Coen has been telling media journalists that there are plans for a True Grit 2 - why not? Coen said, John Wayne made two and Warren Oates also did a TV movie so there's plenty of scope out there for Rooster.

Below find the latest TV Spot for the highly anticipated movie.

True Grit new poster campaign

When one poster isn't enough - new character posters have been added to the Coen's highly visible campaign.

NEW POSTER FOR TRUE GRIT

This stylish poster is creating ever more excitement for the forthcoming western from the Coens - It's a cool image - check out the three riders in the lower corner.

PEPPER 2010

Ned Pepper 2010

True Grit may be the big western hit we've been waiting for

The lucky critics who have already seen True Grit 2010 are adding to the hype surrounding the western by saying that it stands a good chance of winning Best Picture at the next Oscars. But whatever happens it is nice to see a western getting so much attention.

Hopefully True Grit 2010 will prove to be that rare thing - a remake that is actually good. And hopefully the film will spur new fans to check out the original John Wayne movie which, despite some of the bad reviews on the net, is an excellent family western. And then these new new western fans will find they have a range of classic westerns to be discovered for the first time.  And you never know all this new interest could create a few new western readers.

The Coens must be quaking in their boots with the high expectations for this movie, but then it was always going to be like that. They are not just remaking any old western but one of the most iconic in the entire genre and Rooster Cogburn, as played by John Wayne in the original, is one of  the biggest western actor there ever was most famous roles. New Rooster actor Jeff Bridges displays true grit in even attempting the role and advanced word is that he's made a damn good job of it.


The latest trailer (below) looks excellent with the court room scene from the original movie, more or less reproduced shot for shot. And for a fun comparison find the original movie trailer below that again

TRUE GRIT 2010 - LATEST NEWS

The release of True Grit has been brought forward in the US, which now makes this hotly anticipated film only a little over a month away. It is reported that the studio were delighted by the rough cut of the movie and see it as a big contender in the vital Christmas market.

Paramount has moved the picture's American release date forward by three days, from December 25 to December 22, pitting it against a crop of other big festive releases including Gulliver’s Travels and Little Fockers.The studio is so impressed by the finished film that it is keen to build buzz amongst audiences going into the Christmas weekend.

True Grit stars Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Barry Pepper and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld, and is already being touted as an Oscar favourite.

True Grit 2010 - why westerns fans should give it a chance

In a perfect world Hollywood would not be in the business of re-making classic movies but in reality, there will always be one classic (and some not so classics)  or other in the process of being remade. Mostly these remakes are dire as with Casablanca, sometimes quite good as with 3 10 to Yuma and there are rare occasions where the re-make is even better than the original as with Ocean's Eleven.

So re-makes will always be there and if we're going to have a plethora of reimagined movies in the cinemas, then why not a few westerns? There are precious little made these days and few with such a high profile as the True Grit movie that I think it is, at least, deserving of an open mind. I've heard too many people grumble about this one, saying it is sacrilege to remake a John Wayne movie and especially such an important one as this.

The original True Grit was the movie for which John Wayne won an Oscar but it's no Red River of The Searchers. I love the movie and Wayne is superb in the role of Rooster Cogburn - it's a great family action movie starring the greatest action movie star of them all. But it's not a precious work of art that should be hidden away, belonging to a previous age. And even if the re-make does suck, which somehow I feel it won't, the brilliant original will still be there and no matter how good Jeff Bridges proves to be as Rooster, Wayne will still be the definitive Cogburn.

Yep Jeff Bridges who takes on the Wayne role for the 2010 True Grit, has some big shoes to fill but don't forget he's not the first to try on Wayne's role - Warren Oates played the character in the mostly forgettable True Grit: A Further Adventure.

Judging from the trailer and the pictures released thus far the actor looks superb in the role and I've not been so excited by a forthcoming movie since Debbie Does Dallas 9 - hang on, I think I might have actually dreamt that one and not seen it. Still it was good, especially the part where I and the...

Another point in the remakes favour is that the Coen Brothers are behind it - truly maverick film-makers if ever there were any so we will be spared a straightforward copycat movie.

So to those western fans thinking of boycotting this one - "All we are saying is Give Rooster a Chance."

Yep I'm looking foward to this one:

TRUE GRIT 2010 TRAILER NOW LIVE

Here it is - the trailer for the long awaited re-make of the John Wayne classic, True Grit




It's getting bloody exciting - can't wait for this one

True Grit - official photographs as the release date looms ever closer

Jeff Bridges as Rooster Cogburn and Hailee Steinfeld as Mattie Rose

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The real deal

True Grit 2010 is expected to be released on the 25th December 2010 and westerns fans are hoping for a big hit for the genre - this film is either going to be magnificent or it will stink and Jeff Bridges must be applauded for having the courage to try the role made iconic by John Wayne. It doesn't matter that actors other than Wayne have already taken the role of the one eyed law-man for it will be with The Duke that the comparison will be made.

Wayne played the character twice - firstly in an Oscar winning turn in True Grit and then in the less successful sequel Rooster Cogburn AKA Rooster Cogburn and the Lady. There had been plans for a third movie but these were dropped after the less than stellar returns for the second movie. Warren Oates also played the character in a largely forgettable TV movie entitled, True Grit: A further adventure.

At one time there was even talk of a Television Series based around the exploits of the character and with Oates in the title role but the glory days of the TV western were long gone and studio chiefs wouldn't green-light the project. And when a year or so ago it was announced that the Coen brothers would be re-making the movie based on Charles Portis' book western fans were horrified.

Why can't they leave the classic alone? Was a familiar moan but the fact that the Coens, highly innovative film-makers, were behind the project and that Jeff Bridges had been cast in the title role does give strong hopes that this will turn out to be a worthy movie and may even gave the western a profile with a new generation of movie fans for whom the western has always been the genre their dads watched.

Will Bridges still be smiling after the release of the hotly anticipated re-make?

I myself am a huge fan of John Wayne and although the original True Grit is not Wayne's best western, it is a damn fine film nonetheless. Yep, it definitely deserves the "Classic"  status! So I'm eager to see True Grit 2010 - in fact, I can't remember being this excited about a forthcoming film in years. So let's all hope that True Grit makes this Christmas truly special for western fans.