World of Blue - Archived Forum 2007-2022

I was tempted to throw this in the Twin Peaks forum, but I'll resist.

But I have to say, a lot of this film looks to me like it influenced Twin Peaks. Specifically, the bad guy reminds me of what Lynch and Frost were aiming for in regards to Mr. C.

But even more than that, the subverting of expectations. This is the film where everything is building up to a big confrontation that never happens. And that is basically what happens with no confrontation between Mr. C and Coop, nor between Laura/Carrie and Sarah. Or even between Chantel/Hutch and either the FBI or Mitchum brothers.

I would also say that though No Country is an Academy Award winner, from the reviews on IMDB, it also has its 'Profoundly Disappointed' group. What some of us see as brave departure from storytelling convention, others see as 'a lot of buildup with no payoff'.

And of course, there is the ending. Definitely not the kind of ending one would expect from a movie like that!

IIRC, Kyle MacLachlan in an interview said Mr. C's look was inspired in part by Bardem's Chigurh.

This is a very good remark. Never thought of that - but indeed!

Having said that, I'm not such a big fan of neither Something about this 'no pay-off' thing appeals to me (in both cases). The unexpected ending of "No Country..." is intriguing but I couldn't say it left me with much - intrigued for a while, I quickly forgot about it, too.

Never saw this before last week. I have to disagree with BOB1, I had a lengthy conversation afterward with my spouse and have thought about it throughout the week. I don't think the film lacks pay off, everything is set up dramatically and thematically, it's just concerned with something more specific than genre heroics (or tragedy). If you think about the film backward, from the perspective that the last scene is the payoff, the rest of the movie fits and is appropriate.