TRUE GRIT FILM COMPARISON
The concept of writing a blog seems very strange to me. As a lawyer, I write everyday, but usually about narrow topics, or at least about topics which I am trying to make narrow. The idea of expounding on something which is not of pressing concern to my clients or my practice is a whole new process for me. As my first attempt, I took the sage advice to write about what you know—the movies. I have the same philosophy as Steve Martin’s character in the movie Grand Canyon (screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and Meg Kasdan): “All of life’s riddles are answered in the movies.”
Actually movies and justice make a perfect pair. Indeed, it seems that for most of us the only justice we experience regularly in our every day lives is the feeling we get while sitting in a dark theater watching our hero dispensing justice. I think we all naturally seek justice, whether in reality or in the movies. So, as my first official blog I have chosen to do a comparison of the 2010 and 1969 movie versions of True Grit, a story about chasing justice.
True Grit is and was a classic western, both in the 2010 or 1969 versions. Even though the stories are the same, it is a tricky thing to attempt to compare the two films since the time itself can make a difference. The latest version has the advantage of several generations’ worth of improvements in visual and sound technology, although the visual quality of the 1969 version is still very good and holds up well. Yet, the opening title song by Glen Campbell does seem more to accentuate the date of the movie more than the texture of the film. For me, though, the real comparison has to do with the characters: John Wayne versus Jeff Bridges as “Rooster Cogburn,” or Matt Damon versus Glen Campbell as “Texas Ranger LaBoeuf” (pronounced “la beef”), or Hailee Steinfeld versus Kim Darby as “Mattie Ross.” So, the real question: who was better?
I will start with the LaBoeuf character. I should confess, though, this is not my favorite character, regardless of who is playing him. It seems like for much of the story LaBoeuf can not decide whether he wants be Mattie’s older brother, or try to flirt with her. In any event, as an actor, Glen Campbell is a very good country singer. I haven’t heard Matt Damon sing, but as a singer, I bet he is a really good actor.
It is a bit more difficult to pick a winner between the two Matties. Kim Darby was our first sweetheart in the role, so it is hard to just move her aside for another, but Hailee Steinfeld sure makes a good argument for question: “Kim who?” Between the two, Steinfeld nailed the “life is hard so its time to put away childish things” transformation. Particularly the scene where Mattie is bargaining over the horse; Steinfeld appeared shrewd beyond her years, but with Darby, Mattie’s demeanor seemed more bratty than wise. Again, in fairness to Darby, what we expected 40 years ago from this character may be different than the level of savvy we expect today from a young person.
Okay, the score is 2 to 0 so far between the 2010 versus the 1969 versions—just in case you are keeping score. This takes us to John Wayne versus Jeff Bridges. I liked both of these guys and both were very credible as Rooster Cogburn. Both actors were convincing as tough guys who could drink and shoot with great proficiency, while fearlessly tracking a killer. Still, and somewhat surprisingly, Wayne did the better job of bonding his character with Mattie. For example, take the scene where Marshall Cogburn and Texas Ranger LaBoeuf initially head out to find Tom Chaney, the man who killed Mattie’s father, and they try to leave Mattie behind on the other side of the river. Mattie, hell bent to go with them, rides her horse into the swift river and makes it to the other side, only to have LaBoeuf spank her as a child when she arrives on shore. Rooster Cogburn decides he has had enough and “persuades” LaBoeuf to stop. In the 2010 version you get the feeling that Cogburn is sick of La Boeuf’s straight-laced, condescending attitude, and this is a good time to challenge him. In the 1969 version, though, Cogburn stops LaBoeuf because he seems to realize that who he thought was just a high strung little girl is actually somebody with conviction and courage—well ah, should I say, true grit.
To me, this was the point of the film. You expect John Wayne to have true grit, and maybe even LaBoeuf to show some backbone along the way, but the fact that a young woman would risk everything to gain justice for her father’s death, well, even John Wayne understood this is something worth noting and admiring. I will say again, I liked both Bridges and Wayne, and if I were scoring the two portrayals, I would say Jeff Bridges should have been nominated for an Oscar and John Wayne should have won an Oscar—actually, the voters for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences saw it the same way.
