No Country For Old Men - What it all Meant 

Even the two boys at the end arguing over money contributed to the movie's theme. It was brilliant work overall.

As a child of the seventies and eighties I saw the change in the world that is depicted in this movie. My grandfather and Uncle were in local and state law enforcement during the 60's through the 90's. I saw the violence that came with the "industrialization" of drugs. My family members told me of the "honest" criminal of a past time, while reading stories about another drug related murder. I grew up in Florida, and the influx of drugs from South and Central America fueled greed and violence of a scale that had not affected my community in previous decades. I was a boy who loved to hear tales of cops and robbers, and I also lived at the same cultural crossroads when this movie takes place. My uncle retired in the early 90's after a Miami drug lord threatened to kill his family for disabling a large part of the kingpin's organization. The drug lord was locked up and faded to obscurity, but not before two men were arrested five miles from my uncle's home with pictures of his family and his house, and enough weapons to carry out the murders.

In the book, Chigurh was a lot more cruel. He makes a man he shot at the hotel look him in the eyes, and shoots him in the head so he can watch him die. He also taunts Carla Jean at the end and she actually ends up calling the wrong side of the coin, and he convinces her her husband wanted to leave her and was cheating on her.

That's a really thoughtful analysis, I enjoyed that. I'd always read the film as being a comment on the unavoidable terror and violence in American life (and by extension, all life in the world). I think Chigurh gets caught out at the end to demonstrate that there is no escape from chaos - even if you are an amoral perfectionist assassin who checks his mirrors after leaving a crime scene. All it takes is the noise from a child's bicycle and someone else running a stoplight to change the game. Chigurh's 'code' (his rule of absolute perfectionism in adherence to fate) was shown to be of no use in this situation. I don't know if it's just me, but I find the opposite reactions of the two kids to the injured Chigurh both troubling and hopeful. It seemed like a comment on there still being value in moral decisions, even in a chaotic world.

Instead of trying to sound dramatic and pretentious, try presenting an actual theme for the story. I totally agree with most of your points, but you didn't elaborate on any of them. I really respect you for putting this together, but the deep/slow voiceover thing with a little text on the screen really killed it...

At the end when Tommy Lee Jones talks about how there have always been people like Anton. When the two "old" sheriffs talk about "how could people act like this" and "it wasn't like that in my time". These are all references about how we remember the good old days, and how place so much happiness on the way things used to be. There always has, and always will be Anton's in the world. IMHO.

Very observant, could you try sounding a bit more enthusiastic though?

This interpretation is off a bit... This is a classic morality play where our would be hero fails to be the good guy he was "meant" to be (Luellen) he fails to be the good Samaritan, (no agua), instead looks for the money.... but later feels guilty (whoops) and pays dearly for his flip flopping good/bad deeds, as would be expected in a morality play. Immediate comparison between Anton and Luellen is drawn right off the bat (hold still)...so we keep our eye on the ball and main message of the work. Anton is our "hero" as he is not about money, he indeed answers to a "higher authority" beyond money and power (the coin toss) -- rising high above the rest of the money chasers, even though he is a cold killer, which is the point, (even the killer is better than these others since he follows a creed beyond the payoff), he lives, after all and the work only gives him a minor slap on the wrist for his murderous deeds (the broken arm).... All in all multiple level ideas here, many ingenious literary devices and the overall comment on society represented by the deeds and acts seen in the work.... Morality distorted by greed and selfishness, becoming a twisted flawed new world culture of personal interest and exploitation, an old problem sinking to a new low as it spreads throughout the me/money culture an accepted almost a new age philosophy of selfishness and twisted self interest--the disease of our time...

Beleiving in a false path is where senselessness comes. Very true. People self justify evil the same way Anton does.

I think that the main point of the film, is when the older sheriff says to Tommy Lee Jones's character "that's vanity".

This is a hard film to tackle. Good job with presenting your ideas

With shit movies like sucide squad coming out nowadays. I'm not surprised to see this movie making a relevant viewing comeback in 2016

first time I've really heard anyone define the title. I've read the book twice and somehow I just never delved into the title much. I took it for the face value that I think most people do: that a violent world is no world for the old. a survival of the fittest definition. but it's not like that at all. good one dude. appreciate your work!

That's a great statement by Chugurh. "I got here the same way the coin did." Most likey believes that it was chance that brought these events fall into order.

Just for anyone who struggled to follow this as I did, when the narration and the text come on at the same time, listen to the narration first and then read the text after he's done speaking.

Glad I finally got around to this one, forgot how great this movie was. Anyways, next video will be on something less morose, promise.

One small point for "No Country", even though Tommy Lee Jones character is considered a hero there are times he is truly unfit for the job. Of course, that is part of what is meant by the title. But, remember the scene when Jones goes to the trailer and is not that far behind Shigurh? He doesn't seem to care. If he goes to the management office and asks them - the lady there will provide a description of Shigurh. If he shows a little energy, who knows - might actually catch him. Yes, the sheriff is worn out - he is tired of the evil he's seen, but he should have already stepped aside. When you lose your will to do your job, it is time to leave and hand it over to someone else.

The most relevant part of the movie comes with the line "if the rule you follow brought you to this, of what use was the rule?" In this scene if you could believe that Anton is Satan and Woody Harrelson is a Christian, the idea is that the belief in good in a higher power Will result in a good life is all a mirage, because in the end it's the devil's playground. I'm not saying I believe this and I'm not looking to start a religious debate here, but that's the way I view it. Saying no Country for old men is like saying that the idea that the meek shall inherit the earth is a fallacy. The old people represent the naïve people that never saw the forest through the trees, and this is a subtle or maybe even the blatant shot at Christianity and many other religions that believe their way is the right way.

your vids always inspire me to rewatch these movies luckily I own this particular one lol

Still the best movie to come out in the last 15 years. Amazing achievement

I don't think this movie is as complex as it's made out to be by so many. It's basically about getting out of the way of evil. The main protagonist puts himself in the way by stealing the money, the lawman takes himself out of the way at the end by retiring. the bad haircut guy is the inexorable, unforgiving nature of karmic retribution for those that play with evil....within the context of his own code. he is NOT evil...he is Fate, karmic retribution, the Hand of the universe smackin' a bitch that's what all the coin flips are about. He sees himself as a powerful extension and executor of fate. fate is lack of control, control of outcome, like a spinning coin, and it seems like luck, calling the coin right. if you have a good fate, it seems like luck, but the bad haircut makes speeches telling you it's not, speeches reflecting his obsession with fate thru-out the film so you got the idea of getting out of the way of evil, a choice, and the antagonist's idea of fate as all-powerful, no control, no choice. To my mind, this is the central conflict that drives the film haircut is further underscored as some inexorable force of natural law when he gets T-boned and compound fractured at the end, and it barely slows him down, You can't stop haircut and you can't stop fate. while i'm having fun here, another way to look at it is that the protagonist is really the bad guy here, NOT Beatle Cut. Beatle Cut is amoral, whereas Cowboy Hat is moral and therefore evil when he steals the money, endangering his innocent wife. Blaming Mop Top is like blaming a shark for chasing someone who jumps in the water wearing a meat wetsuit. the various conflicts and contradictions here are behind the lack of resolution people felt watching it, but the ending makes perfect sense to me, because Bowl Cut is not just a man, but Fate and Karma, and you can't kill those two things. The Sheriff sort of realizes this and so throws up his hands at the hopelessness of stopping the rolling-downhill-snowball that is evil Evil was a small ball back in the day. Cops barely carried guns. But now, shit's just gone too far and that karmic snowball is too big. Viewed this way, the film is bleak and unsettling. And a masterpiece, of course

I'm 15 and I desperately want to understand the artistic sides of films, can just never seem to see it though.

The delusion of order. This is a great explanation and analysis. It's like having an interpreter. Personally I appreciate the very direct (perhaps what some are mistaking for pretentiousness?) approach to the explanation. It makes it easy to follow.

Great work as usual!!! Could you please do What it all meant: Amadeus, next?

Nice analysis, thanks! I suggest a bit different perspective… To me this movie is more about some system becoming irrelevant to reality. In America’s golden years (there was some inertia also) system was simple: policemen protect, doctors cure et cetera. There also was rather common understanding of moral. In the film it is shown how a number of persons face someone with a different philosophy (incl. different ethics) and mostly fail. That is why film is called “No Country For Old Men” - you can not survive in the present with concepts of the past. I also consider noteworthy following pair of episodes:1. Hunting, pray escapes 2. Anton Chigurh approaches a person with cattle killing machine. I think here is shown that living in “perfect society” makes person forget his instincts. Antelope somehow can sense danger, man can not.

That was wonderful and truly captured the meaning of the movie (and the book). Great job!

Once again great analysis, thank you.

Random violence has always been there and always will be here. Just watch the scene where tommy lee jones talks to his uncle, and his uncle tells a story about how some natives shot a distant relative in the back and took his money. The world has always been unforgiving and cold, anton just realizes the futility of the other money grubbers plight. The money is best kept in his hands so as to prevent further senseless and selfish violence

The movie is about how meaningless life could be. You could be engross and invested in it one moment and another moment asking yourself what does it even mean, what's the point. The honest conclusion is, nothing, if you want you can give it meaning, you can find your motivation, you can think of what is the right things to do, goals, the rules you should follow, but in the end there really is no purpose, just a chain of cause and effect.

Maybe im not quick enough to enjoy this method of delivery but, i do not like having two sources of information coming all at once. Feels weird in my opinion. Just thought i'd share how i would like to watch your content. I enjoy the point of view.

Could you do the fountain?

I do not understand the ambiguity surrounding this movie. Its about males dealing with isolation while searching for fulfillment. Each character is of the same archetype, dealing with a different situation. Its given away in the dream concerning Ed-Toms father riding on horseback through the mountains. That dream is the entire movie. It is life. A bunch of pouty males doing what they think equates to fulfillment in the moment and the latent consequences of those actions. Its about the death of the patriarch and the lost male.

Suggestions: The Zero Theorem Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas/The Rum Diary The Wackness The Way of the Gun Brazil Sorry if you got these already

Can you please do Drive

excellent! please consider "The Machinist"

Freaken awesome work, dude, cheers. I don't know where to begin.

You seem confused by the movie. There is no coherence to your analysis, either visually or in the voice-over. Focus on one thing at a time. Stop with the dramatic pauses, the background music and the trite parallelism, and just give the material with some visuals.

I don't often comment, but I need you to know how beautiful and well-made your videos are. Thank you for the original content. Seeing as you're still a relatively medium to small sized channel, I hope you don't get discouraged or dissuaded from making many, many more videos. You've earned another subscriber. Cheers, mate.

Loved how Llwelyn's gf never called the coin and Chigurgh was left confused and ultimately shot her for no reason..then fate came back at him for breaking his rule.

How does No Country for Old Men reflect or contradict the “values and assumptions” in “Classical Hollywood Cinema” that Robin Wood outlines?

I think that the point of the movie is to get you to think, and I think that that is really important. But also it has a message I think, the point is that everything is meaningless and no matter what you try to do, you will, in the end, die, it all ends the same. Is Chigur death? Is he a man? I think he is a bit of both because even for him there are forces outside of his control that act upon him. It challenges everything that you are supposed to believe, and that makes you think, and the conclusion is it is all random, nothing matters, it is all the same, it is all pointless. It is no country for old men because the old man is trying to deal with the world according to his system, but everything is always changing and before you know it the system is nothing like what you thought it was, and you are left behind. Even if you live you feel useless and life is empty, no matter what happens you lose, everyone loses.

much needed breakaway from typical meaningless youtube videos, you are adding value....and great music too...is it from the OST or something else?

Seeing 6-7x, I just noticed that Ed Tom sounds nearly the same as Anton. Very interesting.

A really good movie if you like this type movie.

This move is about Camus' absurd which is Personified in Chegur

Medieval times offered up unspeakable tortures, murders, etc.

Great analysis of one of my favorite movies :). Could you do Barry Lyndon and/or Days of Heaven? Keep up the awesome work.

Llewellyn caused everything also. His gunshot set off the Mexican stand off.

Excellent substantive insights and analysis of human motivation and crime. Well done. || I would use the word self-serving instead of selfish to describe the motivations you do regarding perjury to protect someone. As a metaphor, the coin toss isn't binary in the encounter with the store owner. It's flipped three times. That's significant because the action Chigurh takes shows that he isn't an impulse driven psychopath. To me, this is a very good touch because it makes him even more lethal, due to his resolve and doggedness. Chigurh is one _really_ scary guy. In summary, I'm not sure McCarthey intended to give any insights into "abnormal psychiatry". In a way, Chigurh could be thought of as an alternative hero. He's devoted, resilient, brave, determined, professional, and true to his own internal code of ethics. I read the book and haven't seen the movie. The book is unlike anything I've ever read. A real revelation about how style can be significantly different, and effective. A great book. Better than _The Road_ . This is the novel for which McCarthey should have received the Pulitzer Prize.

When the clerk is given the opportunity to "call it", he doesn't understand the purpose for it, but calls anyway. When he calls correctly, Chigurh replies "well done", as if someone could be responsible for and even complimented for being lucky. Chigurh is highly principled. His values and principles are simply non-Christian, so compared to the other "good" guys, he seems the ultimate evil. His brand of morality is "good", however, in the Nietzschean sense. The way that the Romans, or classical Greeks may have perceived it.

One of my favorite movies of all time! Great video and keep up the good work!!

Big fan man. Found u yesterday n watched a majority of the vidz keepm coming I lovem. And i wanna see an interstellar one!!!

This movie is 100% about the money. Where is the money, where has it gone and who ends up with it. The final three scenes of the movie gives all the clues to where the money went

Great analysis. Don't mind the trolls. The way you present your content and ideas are great because they're yours!! Originality and fresh opinions are some of the most important things in any kind of art.

i told you i ain't got no agua

Alienated father's and sons and unbridled technology and it's impact on both. Simple.

HAHA! You need to start a band and call it The Doors

Meh..I think you are over analyzing it and trying to get to wordy and deep. For the most part the story is pretty straight forward and not very complicated. The underlying sub-story is the older sheriff trying to make sense of it all and failing to do so because his thinking is that of a simpler time and a more laid back area and he can't grasp the senseless cold violence of the new criminals. He actually makes reference to this right from the start by saying he doesn't want to understand it. He doesn't want to be "part of this world"

I really like the content of your videos but it's a little distracting if you say one thing and display another thing to read at the same time, be it your own words or a quote from a scene. I can imagine some viewers are forced to think about two things at once or at least in a short time. Maybe I'm a little slow but I can imagine it's distracting nonetheless. Just some advice to make your videos better for every viewer, because as I said, I like the content and as someone who loves movies, channels like yours are essential for me to subscribe. Have a good day!

Great the best explanation on the movie I have seen yet. Hits the ideals best. Hard was the movie. I had a hard time deciphering it. Thanks

Good Job, Dude! My favorite film....!!

One of my FAV movies .... but the only thing I do not understand is WHY did they cast Woody Harrelson ... they could have cast L.Q. Jones and there would be no question ...

Random chance and fate are the same. It just depends on what you want to call it.

I agree with you, but I think you might have said it in fewer words and perhaps more succinctly. A theme can more or less be briefly stated. What the author was saying, alluded to several times in the movie, is that we are steadily becoming a more violent and psychopathic society in which there are more and more cold-blooded killers like Anton Chigur and less healthy room for the rest of us. "You can't stop what's coming." said the old man, meaning the future will be even more threatening than what's already here. In other words, if you're not prepared to deal with the menace, this may not be the place for you.

That was quasi deep. Also, believing in a higher power is not wrong or a fallacy, but the way someone reaches that conclusion always seems to be.

You should do American Beauty.

Now it makes sense, I was just missing a few pieces.

Nice reading. I would distill it to the final minute of your analysis, which for me is a stream running through Cormac McCarthy's later works: the meaning men want in the world isn't there. No Country echoes Blood Meridian, as Chigur echoes the Judge.

So wait...you thought your personal commentary was more important than hearing the actual lines in the movie? Hmmm interesting...

Great interpretation, keep it up. by the way, what software do you use for editing?

Thank you so much for doing this! I must ask: do you take request for Animes, or is that not your thing?

Spot-on analysis. Thank you!

god two minutes into this guys long winded narrative and im losing it. jesus man i gotta watch this at double speed are you on oxys

Anton is death itself, paying off the deeds done for selfish gains

You can say everything you want about the good ole days but it was even worse in the 1800s

I am not attempting to be a contrarian here. For a movie with such great critical acclaim I think that No Country for Old Men is an embarrassing shit show. Regardless of the message that the writers were attempting to convey.

At some point your should do shutter island Spoilers There's a bunch of interesting theories on how the main character isn't actually crazy and how the movie is a commentary on how ones reputability is only affected by how others perceive you

could you post script of description of past videos and future from now on like you did for there will be blood thanks

a great movie to explain its meaning is "shame". In my opinion one of the most complete movies! pleas consider doing it

awesome analysis on one of if not the best coen brothers film ever =D

As far as killer characters goes, I must admit Anton Chigurh was pretty good.

"right and wrong in the eye of the beholder" - j mazzulla

Best movie ever and i can watch it many times anf it is still very interesting

Hi, can u do mulholland drive?

What is the background music?

Have you ever played dark souls? There's a lot to talk about in a video and I can imagine you could get a lot of traffic with something as famous as dark souls

your good at this.really good

If this is really true, the movie was just as ridiculously pretentious as I thought. Awesome movie, but some deep philosophy it ain't.

gr8 work! shorter video would have more views, but it would loose a lot of the art in it.

What I wish people would realize is that God gave humans free will. Those who continued to do wrong will be judged because everyone had a sense of hearing about God and about doing things that were wrong and illegal!

Nah, this doesn't ring true in my reading of the film, and you get so abstract in your analysis it's like you're making an equation. A film is not an equation. Neither is a book, and to give credit its due, this movie stays very close to the book by Cormac McCarthy. REPLY

I'd love to see you analyze "Moonrise Kingdom," by Wes Anderson. I find it odd that the film he makes after "fantastic mr.fox," contains supreme amounts of adult content....but with good actors as the lead. I also am deeply touched by the film, but I can't understand what's going on underneath the surface of it.

I stopped watching, and disliked as soon as the guy started talking. He sounds clinically depressed

David Blaine narrating?

It was a metaphor for the devil messing up God's world. You needed to read the book to know that, as the language from the book wasn't that well conveyed in the movie.

When will the next video be up? Really looking forward to it

ignore the down votes, people always want things they can't have, I got more than I expected

Great analysis... shame there isn't a top quality study book on the film

had this in dvd to

You miss the major point of the book and your perception of Chigurh as a good or evil man are totally off. His killing isn't senseless. He is perhaps one of the most good men in the story because he never, ever, defies his set of principles. You need to do some more research and actual thought next time. You completely missed the mark with this one. Moss is not a good character, Bell is not a good character, but Chigurh is the only honest man in the book. He does everything for a cause, he guides himself by faith and his belief in fate. Very displeased. Not an adept analysis at all.