Too often in modern films the superficial layer of the plot is all that is seen, leaving the subtext forgotten and ignored. In Joel and Ethan Coen’s 2008 film No Country For Old Men, adapted from the novel of the same name by Cormac McCarthy, the outer layer of the plot is filled with grisly violence and a country that has fallen from it’s once prized wholesomeness; however if examined on a deeper level the subtext of the film reveals the Coens’ ideological views of modern society. No Country For Old Men is a criticism of violence in America as evidenced through the subtext of the film showcased by visual techniques, dialogue use, and the amount of gratuitous violence seen throughout the film.
One technique employed by the Coen’s to criticize the America violence in the subtext of No Country For Old Men is by visually linking Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) visually with an animal. During the film’s opening Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) is hunting pronghorn in the back country of Texas when, instead of killing the animal he was aiming at he merely injures the beast and for the sake of compassion Llewelyn follows after the retreating pronghorn in an attempt put it out of it’s misery. Llewelyn follows a trail of blood that the animal has left, the camera never rises above the ground in these shots, forcing the viewer to associate blood with the dying animal. Further into the film there is a scene in which Anton has been shot and Llewelyn is trailing him presumably to kill Anton. Once again the tool that Llewelyn uses to locate Anton is the trail of blood. Not only are the camera shots the same, low to the ground forcing you to look only at the blood, but the pattern of the blood is very similar to that of the injured pronghorn. This visual link between the injured animal and the inured Anton provides the subtext that Anton is nothing more than an animal, he bleeds just like an animal, and should be put out of his misery. Anton is further linked visually with animals is by his weapon of choice, a device used by farmers to efficiently kill their cattle herds. When Anton kills his victims it is likened to him slaughtering livestock; the subtext of this visual device is that not only is Anton an animal but all citizens are; due to the violent culture in which they exist people are no better than animals who kill each other senselessly. This is a direct criticism of the violent nature of contemporary American Culture.
The second technique that the Coen’s employ in the subtext of No Country For Old Men is the use of a very powerful line of dialogue. While recovering in the hospital from his altercation with Anton, Llewelyn asks Carson Wells (Woody Harrelson) if Anton is the “ultimate badass”. According to Patrick Walsh he certainly is, making the audience empathetic for the characters on screen with Anton, because every time he appears someone is getting killed (par. 3) This single line of dialogue and the way that it is delivered is evident that the subtext of the film is criticizing American violence. Evidenced by the fact that Anton is “the ultimate badass” there is no one more dangerous in the world than he is, and he is living, and killing, in America. If the single most evil man in the world lives within America than surely America is the most evil and dangerous place in the world. By labeling Anton as “the ultimate badass” the film is really insisting that he is the embodiment of all the evil in the world, and that men like him do exist and that is an awful truth. The way in which the line is delivered also speaks to the film’s subtext. Llewelyn makes the horrifying revelation that Anton is “the ultimate badass”, and despite this he seems as calm as ever. The simple act of having no reaction to the fact that pure evil is hunting you down showcases America’s desensitization to violence in contemporary society, and this desensitization would be impossible as well as unnecessary if society were less violent. By spotlighting one man’s complete numbness to violence the film’s subtext is expressing criticism towards the extreme violence of contemporary America and starkly revealing it’s consequences.
The final technique employed by the Coen’s in No Country For Old Men is the use of gratuitous violence in the film. As Peter Travers wrote “[the film] reveals a soulless America that is no country for anyone, never mind old men” (par. 2). From the very beginning of the film Sherif Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) has a voiceover narration in which he describes a random act of violence, “Told me that he’d been planning to kill somebody for about as long as he could remember. Said that if they turned him out he’d do it again. Said he knew he was going to hell”. This articulates clearly the stark fact that violence happens for no reason at all, criticizing society and it’s violent inhabitants. Further into the film Sherif Bell and Deputy Wendell (Garrett Dillahunt) come to the scene of the drug deal gone bad and, after surveying the damage Wendell comments “Aw, hells bells. They even shot the dog”. This example of unwarranted violence shows once again the ideological views of the Coens’ that American society is full of senseless violence, for why would there be a necessity to kill the dog. In his review of No Country For Old Men Roger Ebert describes the film as “essentially a character study, an examination of how it’s people meet and deal with a man so bad, cruel, and unfeeling that there is simply no comprehending him” (par. 6). This statement reflects that there is so much violence in the film, emanating from one character in particular although each man is guilty of violence throughout the film, that the other characters do not immediately know how to react to and deal with Anton. A poignant reflection of how the society has evolved from a peaceful place where such skills were not necessary to a country where you must be able to handle violence of this caliber. Extreme and unnecessary violence have been used eloquently by the Coen’s to express through the subtext of No Country For Old Men a criticism of the violence in contemporary America.
No Country For Old Men is a provocative and moving story about three men and how they face the violence of modern society. The film is told through interwoven stories of murder, theft, and senseless acts of violence, and the surface layer of the film presents the viewer with a sense of the violence taking place in America. The ideology communicated through the subtext of the film is that No Country For Old Men is a criticism of violence in America, this point being solidified through visual representations, use of dialogue, and gratuitous violence shown throughout the film. Is becomes very clear through the subtext of the film to see the ideological views of the Coens and to observe their views on American society and it’s unrelenting violence.
Works Cited
Coen, Joel and Ethan. No Country For Old Men. Perf. Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Tommy Lee Jones. Miramax Films, 2008. DVD.
Scott, A.O. Rev. of No Country For Old Men, dir. Joel and Ethan Coen. Movies.NYTimes.com. New York Times, 9 November, 2007. Web. Nov. 2009.
Walsh, Patrick. Rev. of No Country For Old Men, dir. Joel and Ethan Coen. Cinematical.com. Cinematical, 9 November 2007. Web. Nov. 2009.
Ebert, Roger. Rev. of No Country For Old Men. dir. Joel and Ethan Coen. rogerebert.suntimes.com. Roger Ebert, 8 November, 2007. Web. Nov. 2009.
Travers, Peter. Rev. of No Country For Old Men. dir. Joel and Ethan Coen. rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone, 1 November, 2007. Web. Nov. 2009.
Alison's Film Blog 
Leave a comment