True Grit (2010) Pretty Well Figured

True Grit (2010) Paramount

A few days ago, I realized that I had not seen a western this month which is a fact I cannot live with. Whether it be a remake or the original a western is a western. I consider it a shame not to at least view a western a few times a year because it gives us a good perspective on how simple life used to be here in America. Before the big cities and the modern conveniences, Americans used to have true grit. It is hard to actually come across a person these days that has put their shoulder to the plow and not on some dude ranch vacation.  When you watch a western you gain a thankful heart that you do not have to spend your days worrying about how to feed your family or if they will die from some disease.

True Grit is the story of an old marshal that has out grown his time and a young girl who seeks justice fort the violent murder of her father. In those days there wasn’t much justice to be had without paying top dollar, so the young girl Maddie aims to find a real tough guy to hunt down the murderer and bring him some.

Whenever you watch these types of westerns you always think about how difficult it must be to find people out in the wilderness. If you are anything like me, I can get lost just hunting small game on foot. On horse, it would be somewhat easier to get around, but people could be making camp anywhere around you so it is not like walking to the front door of a house. Even lawmen through the fifties had a difficult time actually pinning criminals to the murders. The evidence was not much and witnesses were easily disposed of.

True Grit is a better remake than it is an original with John Wayne. Although “The Duke” is an American icon, this was towards the end of his career and not his best work. Jeff Bridges brings out an even better side of ‘Rooster’ and plays a great drunk. I will say that even Matt Damon has a good role in this film and surprisingly did much better than I expected even for a Texas Ranger. Bridges is an honest character and you could say that he was easily frustrated with the general public of the day. I would also consider this movie to be a comedy if you consider one-liners and arguments to be an art form. Rooster and LaBoeuf go back and forth with each other and it makes for a good time.

Although this film may have its quirks, it is an awesome tale about the man Rooster Cogburn and his last hurrah as a marshal and the gumption of a quick witted young woman. He is a drunk but he is loyal to the end. The ending was worth the watch and you are cheering for the hero Rooster and glad he is such an authentic American cowboy that speaks with authentic frontier gibberish accent.

For a movie with an estimated budget of 38 million and a worldwide gross of 245 million, you can bet it was as worth seeing it then and it still is now.