True Grit (2010)

Is quite impressed by the 2010 revisioning of "True Grit" with Jeff Bridges filling the shoes of the legendary John Wayne. To be honest though, the Dude playing a quirky, hard-drinking, fast-shooting, curmudgeon is not bad, but such as the trend in Hollywood, these kind of hard-boiled old dudes get softened by the presence of a young child (in recent memory, Up, Grand Torino, Karate Kid, Despicable Me) and that is truly the cool performance of the leading lady. Only 14, the Mattie character is one of the sharpest wits and brashest determinators I've seen in a long time, and yet, because of her age she sometimes comes across as too naieve or precocious. I personally find the mood and tone of the movie perfectly set by the actors' acting and especially their speech. It's so strange to hear absolutely no contractions (not even a "y'all" from the Texan character!) but that's how a mood is set. Slow on the action, but overall this is a movie to showcase just how far determination gets you...lots and lots of determination.

One of the greatest duels in the film:

vs

this guy helps out too

For someone else's more in-depth review, go here.