Below is the first trailer for the new Joel and Ethan Coen film ‘True Grit’ starring Jeff Bridges, Josh Brolin, Matt Damon, Barry Pepper and introducing Hailee Steinfeld. Ever since I heard about this project, a remake of the 1969 Henry Hathaway film starring John Wayne and Kim Darby, I have been excited. It is a weird sensation because even though there have been good remakes (‘Oceans 11’ and ‘Brother’ for example), I usually have a feeling of dread when I first hear about a remake going into production. Not so with this film, I love the original ‘True Grit’, it is one of my favourite westerns but a lot of time has passed and the Coen’s themselves have said they are not trying to remake the original film, they are creating a new adaptation of the original Charles Portis novel that both films are based on.
The big question then was who do you cast as Reuben J. “Rooster” Cogburn? The iconic, druken, hard nosed, one eyed, tough as nails U.S. Marshall that is hired by Mattie Ross to track down her father’s killer. The film hinges on this character. John Wayne, for all of his faults as an actor, had done a superb job of bringing the character to life in the original. We had pondered this on the Geek Actually Podcast many months ago and one name that had been suggested by Mirren Lee was Mickey Rourke. I would loved to have seen that film. However Joel and Ethan Coen brought Jeff Bridges into the character and I am kicking myself that I never thought of it. In the trailer below you will see that Jeff Bridges is perfectly cast. Hailee Steinfeld is also interesting casting because they made the Mattie character much younger than the Kim Darby version in the original film, this is further evidence that the Coens have returned to the source material because in the book Mattie is a much younger character than the original film.
I really enjoyed the trailer, the first of a few I would imagine, it has the icon scenes that we expect, such as Cogburn riding with the reins in his mouth while shooting twin revolvers plus the polish and pace of recent Coen Brother’s films. What do I want out of this film? I am hoping for ‘No Country For Old Men’ in the wild west. Is that too much to ask for?
‘True Grit’ hits Australian cinemas in January 2011.
What did you think? Are you excited by this remake? Comment below.
