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A man stumbles upon drug money and is chased by a killer who will not rest.

No Country for Old Men begins with a narrative from Sheriff Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) about how he comes from a family of cops and what he’s learned (and would have liked to learn) from the older generation. He talks about a kid he sent to the electric chair and how the kid had no remorse. The kid had been planning to kill someone for quite a while and said, if he was released, he’d do it again. Bell goes on to say he wasn’t sure what to make of that. As he narrates, we see a man, played by Javier Bardem (we learn his name later), who is being arrested. Jones is on the phone with an officer at the precinct who is keeping him up to date on Bardem’s arrest and about an odd tank with a hose that he had with him. As soon as the officer gets off the phone, Bardem chokes him with his handcuffs in one of the most violent struggles in the film. Once the officer is dead, Bardem goes to the bathroom to clean up and heads out with a squad car only to pull an older man over and uses the pressurized air tank to kill the man and steal his car.

As this is going on, we see another man named Llewelyn (Josh Brolin), who is observing some animals with a scope of a gun. He shoots and they run off, but he spots a trail of blood and witnessed a dog limping off in the distance. He follows and finds a traumatic scene of trucks, cars, dead men and a dead dog from an apparent drug shoot out.  At first he believes there are no survivors, but then finds a man bleeding, but still alive in the truck. The man asks for water in Spanish, but Llewelyn takes his gun and tells him (in English) he doesn’t have any. He then finds drugs in the back of the truck.  He assumes there must have been a “last man standing” and goes off to find him only to find the man dead with a case of money. He takes the money and weapons and goes back to his trailer. Later that night he gets remorseful and goes back to the site with water for the man. However, the scene has changed and he is spotted and chased. He runs for it only to have a dog come after it who he kills at the last second in dramatic fashion (probably the scariest moment of the film for me). He goes back home and tells his wife she must flee because the men after him saw his truck and will find out who he is and where he lives soon enough.

He goes on the run, but unbeknownst to him, the case of money has a tracking device in it and Bardem is able to find him at a cheap motel. It is when he gets to the second motel (after Bardem has killed several men at the first hotel that he suspected of stealing the money), that he realizes it’s not possible the killer found him so quickly. He checks the case & finds the tracking device, but realizes it’s too late and the killer is already there. One of the most suspenseful moments of the film involves Brolin watching the shadow under the door waiting in anticipation. There is a shoot- out which leaves both men wounded and on the run.

As the movie goes on, we see more of Bardem and learn his name is Anton Chigurh. We see his twisted way of thinking. I was on the edge of my seat and he eerily questioned a gas station worker only letting him live because of a call in a coin toss. He goes through town killing those who have seen him and following Llewelyn in a deranged pursuit. Even after he’s told by another man sent to find the money, that it’s been located, he’s still determined to kill those he wronged him.

This film had been hyped so much that it didn’t quite live up to the expectations. Some of the dialogue seemed forced, although Jones did his best with it and the only real wrap-up comes with his monologue at the end.  Llewelyn’s mother-in-law did provide a lot of humor and was great in her brief, but memorable part. Bardem does deliver as the eerily calm killer with a rational and logic that only he can understand. The acting works, and the setting fits in perfectly with the story. However, the ending falls flat. Without giving too much away, there is a shocking scene that ends most of the storyline that leaves you wondering how they Coen brothers will end it. We see the killer escape the scene only to be involved in a freak car accident. You think this is it and that he will get his just desserts, the movie ends. However, being that it is a Coen movie and they’re not known for following traditional movie rules, I guess that was to be expected.

The DVD set came with a disk of special features and a digital copy of the movie.  We see how the handcuff strangulation scene was accomplished without hurting the actors and the process that went into the scene. One of the most interesting features was seeing the contraption they made for the actor who was strangled to wear which included a fake neck and a fake pair of hands in cuffs. Once you see this, you realize how oddly waxy and bloodless the hands were, but while watching the scene, you realize the graphic violence took your attention away to any technical details. Fans of the movie will definitely appreciate that info.

The special features include the cast and crew discussing working with the Coens and we learn that the actress who plays Carla Jean (Kelly MacDonald) is actually Scottish. There is also a feature on the relationship between Chigurh and Llewelyn through the eyes of Sheriff Bell. There is also a bit that focuses on Josh Brolin interviewing the cast and crew.

The main difference between this disk on the past release are the in-depth interviews with the Coen brothers, Jones, Brolin, and Bardem that include radio interviews, both live audience and online interviews including a question and answer panel with the Coen brothers, Brolin, Bardem, and Macdonald. There is also a podcast interview and other interviews you’re not likely to find easily online.

But is it worth buying this set if you already own the movie? Well, if you are a huge fan of the film and having all the extra interviews would interest you, then yes it might be worth your money. There are five hours of bonus material that would interest die-hard fans. However, if you already own No Country for Old Men and aren’t too interested in behind the scenes info or brief cast interviews, as well having the convenience of being able to take a digital copy of the movie with you, then I would pass.  I think this set would have sold more had they waited a bit longer to put it out. It kind of makes fans wonder if they should jump on new copies of a movie if DVDs with added bonus features will be offered just a year or two later.

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