Well, I could not wait any longer and saw the movie No Country For Old Men yesterday. To describe this film in one word... WOW. In my January 28^th posting, I discussed the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards and the fact that No Country For Old Men won the award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. I have always felt that this award, voted on by their peers, has to be the utmost honor and a sure indicator of quality entertainment. Specifically, two of the last three winners of this award are personal favorites of mine. Little Miss Sunshine won last year and Sideways won the award in 2005. I have given this award more credence since 1998 when The Full Monty was chosen for the award over Titanic. So after No Country For Old Men won this award Sunday night, I knew I had to see it and, boy, was I right.

If you have not seen this movie yet, don't worry because I do not plan on spoiling it in any way. Have no fear and continue reading. The film does feature quite a bit of violence and blood, so be warned of that going in. As its SAG award recognizes, this movie contains incredible performances by an amazing cast. There are really three major characters. "Llewelyn Moss" is played brilliantly by Josh Brolin and Tommy Lee Jones is perfectly cast as "Sheriff Bell." They are great, but the truly special achievement is made by Javier Bardem who plays the sociopath "Anton Chigurh." When I say special, I mean Bardem's performance is both riveting and haunting and it might be as good as any I have ever seen. Simply outstanding.

This won't ruin the film, but there is this scene towards the end of the film that really captured the essence of the story for me. It is a conversation that takes place between "Sheriff Bell" and his "Uncle Ellis" who is character that has not been previously introduced in the film (in typical Coen Brothers fashion). The sheriff is explaining that he felt "outmatched" and his uncle tells him that we have to continue with our lives no matter how evil life gets. This message resonated with me and I could easily apply it to what these characters were going through. "Uncle Ellis" also had another powerful message during his short conversation with "Sheriff Bell." He said, "While all the time you spend trying to get back what's been took from you, more is going out the door." For not having all that much screen time, this character really helped summarize and tie things together.  I am not sure if these are necessarily the messages that the writers intended, but that is what I took from it.  Those are definitely some words of wisdom that we can all live by.

As great as the acting and characters are in this film, it is also a technical masterpiece. The directing and editing, by Joel & Ethan Coen, as well as the cinematography and sound are all superb. I did not go into the theater expecting to be as impressed as this film left me when it was over. The Coen Brothers have made some other decent movies (like Fargo, The Big Lebowski and O Brother, Where Art Thou?), but I feel none of them come close to this project. The Coen Brothers have already won the Directors Guild of America award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures. Again, this has to be quite an honor since it is awarded by your peers. Not only did they direct, edit and produce this film, but they also wrote the screenplay which is based off of the novel by Cormac McCarthy of the same title. Best Adapted Screenplay is just one of the 8 Oscar nominations that No Country For Old Men has received. We will find out on February 24^th just how many of those the film actually wins. I expect Javier Bardem to take home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor and I also expect the film to win the Oscar for Best Picture. I still will also cheer for both Juno and Michael Clayton which I enjoyed very much. I feel lucky that I have been able to see three such incredible films this year.

Well, that is all I have for Kickin' it today. Thanks for reading and I appreciate all of the feedback. I will probably do some Super Bowl coverage later this week. Peace and much love.

Check this out: Yesterday, I directed you to a fantastic Christopher Walken impression which I hope you enjoyed. Today, I am going to direct you to a music video that features the real Chris Walken. I have always thought this was awkward yet genius at the same time. It is the video to "Weapon of Choice" by Fatboy Slim, check it out.

Quote of the day: This is one of my all-time favorites... "If you have no confidence in self, you are twice defeated in the race of life. With confidence you have won even before you have started." -Marcus Garvey

Download this: "Take It Outside" by Barenaked Ladies - This is from the 2003 album Everything to Everyone