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Mary Elizabeth Williams

Mary Elizabeth Williams
Location
New York,
Birthday
November 09
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I work here. In my other incarnations, I'm the culture critic for PRI's The Takeaway, and my book, "Gimme Shelter" comes out from S&S 3/3/9.

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Salon.com
JULY 30, 2009 1:40PM

How's it Coen?

Rate: 8 Flag

I'm not a raging Coen brothers fan like some folks. I don't overidentify with The Dude; I'm only meh on the "O Brother Where Art Thou?" soundtrack.

BUT

I do absolutely unabashedly adore "Blood Simple," one of the darkest, most twisted, and beautifully shot movies ever made.

So I'm rather intrigued by the news that Zhang Yimou is doing a Chinese version of the brothers' first film.  Yimou is the guy who did House of Flying Daggers, so you know what? You have my attention.

And though we'll have to wait till October to see the full magilla, I can't help thinking the brand spankin' new trailer for "A  Serious Man" is everything a trailer ought to be but too rarely is -- clever, enticing, intriguing, and with just enough info to make you want more. (As opposed to making you feel like you just saved ten bucks and two hours of your life.)

Don't you want somebody to love?

 

 

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Call me boorish but I actually have no real interest in watching the film after seeing the trailer. And that's saying something, because this movie was filmed in part on my college campus and at least one of my friends was an extra in it.

If I didn't know that the Coen brothers had filmed O Brother and No Country, I wouldn't have assumed this movie was noteworthy at all based on the trailer.

Perhaps I just have underdeveloped taste.
Rosenkavalier
July 30, 2009 02:13 PM
Did anyone else think No Country for Old Men was God awful? An absolute sleep-inducing mess...
Pill Bug
July 30, 2009 02:34 PM
In my country is a seed of knowledge...
Joi Kovac
July 30, 2009 02:38 PM
I loved No Country, it wasn't the normal crime drama and pushed the boundries, but then again I have been a big Coen fan ever since Blood Simple. I didn't watch the preview because I am at work and this crappy computer is almost at it's maxium and can't handle downloads.
ocularnervosa
July 30, 2009 02:44 PM
I'm a huge Coen Brothers fan, but for some reason, their trailers never get me excited for their films. Maybe it's that their best moments tend to depend on context, and fall flat when viewed in isolation. So I'm not as excited by this trailer as I am by the existence of the film itself!

Btw, I'm not familiar with the lead actor in these scenes, but one thing is obvious: he needs to make a film with Eugene Levy, playing Levy's son. Like, now.
Pants McCracky
July 30, 2009 02:45 PM
I like some Coen brothers (Blood Simple/Fargo/No Country/Raising Arizona/Barton Fink) but not others (O Brother/Intolerable Cruelty/Burn After Reading/Lady Killers). Serious Man looks like it's going to be in the camp of Burn After Reading. One of those Coen Brothers movies where they think that putting a character in funny glasses will get loads of laughs.
john guzlowski
July 30, 2009 03:25 PM
I really like most Coen brothers movies.

No Country for Old Men kept me rapt with attention - it kept me interested and paying attention the whole time. I didn't find it boring, but I don't believe that "deliberately-paced" is just a euphemism for "too slow and boring". I feel the exact same way about the movie "Master and Commander" - I found the plot and the images on the screen interesting at all times. I do find many mindless action movies boring - like Transformers and most things by Michael Bay - in spite of their endless explosions and confusing, whirling "action" shots. I do enjoy good action movies though - Die Hard and Terminator 2, for example.
DonOntario
July 30, 2009 03:46 PM
Agree, that's a good trailer. Not all Coen bros movies work for me, but there's always interesting stuff in there somewhere. I love Lebowski and also Barton Fink...because what writer doesn't love a movie about writer's block?
Nelle Engoron
July 30, 2009 03:59 PM
thanks for the trailer. Any Coen bro trailer is cause for excitement. And it takes a lot these days since most movies (read Hollywood) are just pure crap. The Godfather changed the way I saw the world. Blood Simple changed the way I saw movies. Even when I dont love the flick, there is always something that surprises me. Who are these people? What are they doing? Why does that women speak like a man? Is she a man.....
danadug
July 30, 2009 04:33 PM
Well, the last line made me laugh! So thanks!

Maybe I'll see it, maybe I won't....we'll see.

(Loved "No Country..."---thought it was a perfect movie. And I'm a Big Lebowski fan too!)
Without a Paddle
July 30, 2009 05:22 PM