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56. The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001)
The Coens already showed interest in the noir genre in some of their films that preceded this one, but in The Man Who Wasn't There, they (finally) fully pressed the gas pedal! With its gorgeous black and white cinematography, engaging noirish plot and stellar cast portraying a whole list of interesting and obscure characters, this film is - for me - up to now THE summit of neo-noir films of the 21st century!
Of course the Coens wouldn't be the Coens if they didn't add their own twist to the typical genre elements and as you can expect, they very much do that here too. The most notable thing is the Coenesque subtle humor that is woven into the script. The film has the atmosphere of a film noir and everyone talks like they're in a film noir, but in essence this really is a deliciously cynical dark comedy (in the most subtle sense of the word). The Coens typically let banal situations cause severe consequences and some of the dialogues are just straight faced comedy gold!
The beauty of this film is that, even though it is undoubtedly comical, it never loses its seriousness and it never makes us less engaged with the actual plot. We still get genuine suspense and effective depressed voice overs, even though it's a story about a barber who blackmails his wife's boss and lover because he wants to invest in dry cleaning. It's a relatable story about a man who is probably as alienated from the world and his surroundings as one can be. He observes everything in an extremely apathetic, but passive manner.
Another main reason why I adore this film so much, is its fantastic cast! Frances McDormand is great as always, Scarlett Johansson is convincing in one of her younger roles and James Gandolfini is simply badass!
The true star of the film is Billy Bob Thornton, though. He was made to play the cynical, depressive, chain smoking guy who's out of luck! His voice and facial expressions are simply SPOT ON! He really IS that character. I'm also a huge fan of the film Bad Santa in which he plays a role with a similar tone (even though he also has a few other extreme character elements in that one).
So, if you're in the mood for some pitch-black comedy with a delightful touch of melancholy and world-weariness (realised by the sadness of Beethoven's Piano Sonatas and Roger Deakins' deliciously somber cinematography), you should definitely watch this remarkably well crafted piece of cinema (it's one of the Coen Brothers' most visually impressive films, in my opinion).
The Man Who Wasn't There is one of those films that will stay a firm personal favorite of mine for a very long time!
A lawyer uses the quantum mechanical uncertainty principle (or Heisenberg principle) in a pretty cool way to explicate the essence of his case to his client.
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The Coens already showed interest in the noir genre in some of their films that preceded this one, but in The Man Who Wasn't There, they (finally) fully pressed the gas pedal! With its gorgeous black and white cinematography, engaging noirish plot and stellar cast portraying a whole list of interesting and obscure characters, this film is - for me - up to now THE summit of neo-noir films of the 21st century!
Of course the Coens wouldn't be the Coens if they didn't add their own twist to the typical genre elements and as you can expect, they very much do that here too. The most notable thing is the Coenesque subtle humor that is woven into the script. The film has the atmosphere of a film noir and everyone talks like they're in a film noir, but in essence this really is a deliciously cynical dark comedy (in the most subtle sense of the word). The Coens typically let banal situations cause severe consequences and some of the dialogues are just straight faced comedy gold!
The beauty of this film is that, even though it is undoubtedly comical, it never loses its seriousness and it never makes us less engaged with the actual plot. We still get genuine suspense and effective depressed voice overs, even though it's a story about a barber who blackmails his wife's boss and lover because he wants to invest in dry cleaning. It's a relatable story about a man who is probably as alienated from the world and his surroundings as one can be. He observes everything in an extremely apathetic, but passive manner.
Another main reason why I adore this film so much, is its fantastic cast! Frances McDormand is great as always, Scarlett Johansson is convincing in one of her younger roles and James Gandolfini is simply badass!
The true star of the film is Billy Bob Thornton, though. He was made to play the cynical, depressive, chain smoking guy who's out of luck! His voice and facial expressions are simply SPOT ON! He really IS that character. I'm also a huge fan of the film Bad Santa in which he plays a role with a similar tone (even though he also has a few other extreme character elements in that one).
So, if you're in the mood for some pitch-black comedy with a delightful touch of melancholy and world-weariness (realised by the sadness of Beethoven's Piano Sonatas and Roger Deakins' deliciously somber cinematography), you should definitely watch this remarkably well crafted piece of cinema (it's one of the Coen Brothers' most visually impressive films, in my opinion).
The Man Who Wasn't There is one of those films that will stay a firm personal favorite of mine for a very long time!
A lawyer uses the quantum mechanical uncertainty principle (or Heisenberg principle) in a pretty cool way to explicate the essence of his case to his client.
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