Are the Coen brothers working on a horror script?

Comedy. Drama. Western. No matter the genre, Joel and Ethan Coen can do no wrong. But how about a horror movie?

The brothers eluded to just such a prospect in an interview the Empire magazine. When Ethan was asked about future projects, and the question was posed about a potential horror film being in the mix, he told the publication: "Funny you should ask, yes, we're working on a couple of scripts now, one of which it would be fair to call a full-on horror movie. Frances McDormand is the monster."

Given that McDormand is his sister in law, the latter part is probably a joke. But the former does sound possible. Of course it could all be bullshit too, but the idea of two of the cleverest writer/directors in the business tackling The Basement's favourite genre is grounds for a rum and Coke.

Which I will go and have right now . . .

Micro Review: True Grit (2010)

As a whole, 2010 was a terrible year for movies save for a select few gems, not the least of which are The Town and Inception. To have a late-year release come and best those two films took me totally by surprise. The fact The Best Movie of 2010 comes from Joel and Ethan Coen does not. We didn't need a remake of John Wayne's classic Western, but the brothers have gone back to the source material, the 1968 novel of the same name, and done a retelling that's all their own. The film is a fine balance between drama and action picture, with a healthy dose of character study and black comedy added to the mix. And don't forget four of the best performances anyone is likely to see in years. Best of all, True Grit is relentlessly entertaining. You don't need to wind your brain up too much to enjoy the hell out of it. It's hard for a movie to get much more Good than this.

The Coen Brothers bring True Grit to Christmas

We here in The Basement don't get too excited about remakes, but when Joel and Ethan Coen decide to redo a classic John Wayne Western with Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon, it's hard not to get too excited. When the film looks as good as the trailer below, one starts to think the film has promise.

Taking on the role made famous by Wayne in the first film adaptation of Charles Portis' novel, Bridges plays eye-patch-wearing, beverage-loving U.S. Marshall, Reuben J. "Rooster" Cogburn. The trailer doesn't give us too much plot-wise, but it seems to follow the same story as the book and original film, which had Cogburn going deep into "Indian Territory" to help a young woman named Mattie Ross (newcomer Hailee Steinfeld) hunt down her father's killer (Josh Brolin). Also along for the ride is Texas Ranger La Boeuf (a nearly unrecognizable Damon).

Give the preview a look, and be sure to share your thoughts!