Film Genre Research: Opening scene of No Country for Old Men (2007)

 No Country for Old Men

Link to video used- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVH8rtBaUq4

Today, I will be observing the opening scene of No Country for Old Men and analyzing it. I will be completing a paragraph on each of the following topics for the movie:

·         Camera shots, angles, movements, focus and framing observations and the meanings they create. 

·         Editing techniques and the tone, mood or meaning they help create.

·         Sound techniques and their impact on the tone and meaning

·         Mise-en-scene techniques: lighting, wardrobe, make-up, setting, set, props- what connotations and layers of meaning to they have?

·         Production and Distribution information including budget, box office numbers, production companies, distributor, director, cinematographer.

·         Opening Credits description including fonts, color, positioning, animated text, genre.

Awards/ Nominations and reason I chose this particular film.

Within the first minute or 2 of No Country for Old men, the shots are very prolonged, slow, but it comes with a reason. As Sheriff Bell-who plays a pivotal role in the movie and its message- narrates the opening minutes, the prolonged shots help to add to the reflective mood that is set as he speaks. The film begins with wide establishing shots of the sunrise of the empty Texas desert, helping to isolate the area. With little movement in the shots the audience can focus on the surroundings while listening to the narration. Also, as Anton is taken into the car by the police officer after being arrested, the camera has a very tight frame. This creates a claustrophobic-like feel, adding tension. This foreshadows the death of the police officer by Anton.

The editing in the opening scene being slow and minimal allows Sheriff Bell to really set the story with the desert surrounding. Now, the audience really absorbs the environment which is really key, especially since Llewelyn finds the drug meet-up shooting aftermath here. With no quick transition or cuts the theme of a new, unbeatable, evil is really set. We then get this idea better when we see Anton in the back of the police car where editing is again minimal, creating realism.

During these opening minutes of the film, there is a general lack of music or minimal use. There are more heavy ambient sounds to help set the surroundings of the desert through the narration. Environmental sounds like wind blowing can be heard. Then, the quietness while Anton and the officer are in the car creates tension between the two. Later this tension comes to its climax as Anton kills him.

The mise en scene is more to set up realism. As the setting unfolds on the Texas desert, there is a deep sense of isolation and, as revealed later, a harsh environment here. Lighting turns from the blue darkness of the sunrise to the brightness of the sun on the desert. The natural brightness shows further harshness of the scene, but also authenticity. The costume design is simple, just as any police officer in the time would be, and Anton is wearing more plain as he seems like a regular person yet mysterious. A prop like the oxygen tank is a weird mechanism that Anton later uses as a weapon, this helps represent the new evil that has come to the desert. It has new devices as well.

No Country for Old Men (2007) is directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and shot by cinematographer Roger Deakins. The film was produced by Miramax Films, Scott Rudin Productions, and Mike Zoss Productions. When comparing the box office numbers to the budget of the movie, there was a major profit made. The budget of the movie was only $25 million, while the box office numbers succumbed to $171 million. This means that there was a profit of nearly 7 times the budget made, this is to no surprise though.

With the opening credits over the wide establishing shots of the Texas desert, the text is simpler and is a white, clean font. This contrasts the darker sunrise that we get. The credits appear gradually and are static just like the shots showing the desert. This overall shows a mature, serious story.

No Country for Old Men accumulated up to 139 nominations for the movie total. This also includes 4 Academy Awards, such as Best Director and Best Picture. On top of this are 2 Golden Globes out of the 4 nominations. The Golden Globes were for supporting actor and best screenplay. Overall, this had lead to over 75 major awards. This leads to why I chose this particular film for my film genre research. Not only is this movie a crime thriller, but also a very well produced and written movie with amazing acting. It is a movie I watched completely in the last month and was completely blown away with. Practically, I was upset I never knew about this movie earlier.