The Berlinale Opens with Truly Gritty Coen Brothers' Cowboy Movie

Feb 12, 2011
Cecily Layzell

Jeff Bridges and Hailee Steinfeld in Berlinale Opening Movie True Grit - Paramount Pictures

Jeff Bridges proves he has true grit in the Coen brothers' carefully crafted Western, which kicked off the 61st edition of the annual Berlin film festival.

The Coen brothers’ movie True Grit opened the Berlinale on Thursday, February 10, 2011. The cowboy flick has already grossed $155 million in the United States, according to the Internet Movie Database, making it popular not only with viewers but also making it the Coen brothers’ most successful movie to date.

Rather like the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, which made swashbuckling a viable box office proposition again, True Grit seems to be breathing new life into the often formulaic Western genre. With meaty roles for its main characters, the Coen brothers bring their brand of intelligent dialogue and clever, sometimes brutal plot twists to the story, which is essentially one of courage and determination - the true grit of the title.

In the Coen brothers’ movie, which they say is an adaptation of the novel by Charles Portis rather than a remake of the 1969 Oscar-winning John Wayne gunslinger, 14-year-old Mattie Ross (newcomer Hailee Steinfeld) sets out to capture Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin), her father's killer. She enlists the help of Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges), a hard-drinking US marshal. The unlikely couple is joined by Texas Ranger LaBoeuf (Matt Damon in cowboy boots) who has his own reasons to get his hands on Chaney.

Jeff Bridges Attends Screening at Berlin Festival

Jeff Bridges walked the red carpet with his co-stars at the Berlin festival opening night screening. Bridges, now 61, two years younger than John Wayne was when he played the role of Rooster Cogburn, has made something of a name for himself playing characters 'under the influence'.

In 2009, this was washed-up, alcoholic country singer Bad Blake in Crazy Heart, for which he won a Best Actor Oscar. Over a decade earlier, in 1998, he played pot-smoking 'the Dude' in The Big Lebowski, another Coen brothers movie that quietly went on to achieve cult status.

Ten Oscar Nominations but No Golden Bear for 'True Grit'

True Grit has been nominated for 10 Oscars but has no chance of winning the Berlin festival’s Golden Bear. That is because the cowboy movie is not in competition for the top prize. Nevertheless, the decision to screen the movie on the Berlinale’s opening night can only serve to raise its profile in Europe, where it has yet to go on general release. The Coen brothers are no doubt hoping that the film will achieve the same success on this side of the pond as it has at home.

The 61st Berlin International Film Festival will screen some 400 films from 58 countries before closing on February 20. The awards ceremony will be held on February 19, when jury president Isabella Rossellini will present one of the 16 contenders with the film festival's Golden Bear.