The Man Who Wasn't There

This was the only film of the Coen Brothers that I was still missing and again a great one! This is an amazing film noir shooted in black and white in the most beautiful way, the light is perfect, it just looks gorgeous! Tells the story about an emotionless baber, Ed Crane, that is amazingly played by Billy Bob Thornton. He discovers that his wife is cheating on him with her boss and decides to blackmail him ir order to raise money for an investment, but things didn't worked out as planed. The atmosphere that The Coens wanted to create was totally succeeded we can definitely feel the melancholy that passes through some of the scenes. Beethoven's piano pieces as soundtrack are also another one of the great things in this film. Another stunning contribution of the super talented Coen Brothers for the art of cinema.

This is maybe little pastiche, especially coming from filmmakers who tend to be so forward thinking. Still, it recreates that old cinematic style and pace so well that it doesn’t feel like a cheap copy. In fact, I’d argue that the Coens’ usual style overlaps with this kind of film very nicely. The characters and performances are interesting, the plot is your typical Coen brothers fare of genre stuff mixed with arthouse, it’s intelligent & sad, and the presentation is great. There’s just a little too much unnecessary narration, which is my only real complaint. I also think it could’ve used some more memorable scenes in general. Not that it’s forgettable, but it’s very reserved and I wanted a little more punch from it. 7.5/10