In as oversaturated genre as filmbro video essays is, and with a film as done-to-death as No Country, you still manage to say something novel, helpful, and entertaining while also pitching your other work as worthwhile- all with the conciseness of a 9 minute video. Good job.
Wonderful observation on No Country. And very effectively explained. Another thing is Anton's obssessiveness to keep his shoes clean is also a way of developing character without saying much. It shows his alienating nature, his tendancy of contradicting his own action (as shown in the final scene of the movie). He doesn't think twice about killing others but he is obsessessed with tidiness, orderliness. He is methodical to a point it is unsettling. Also, this deserves more views! Great video!
It's bonkers that amazing movies can have hundreds of videos essays made about them with a focus on different things in each essay. It makes you realize how much great movies focus on specific tiny details and the amount of work that goes into every second on film. Movies like No Country, Spiderverse, EEAaO, or Sicario clearly have every minute detail planned and it separates them from good movies into perfect movies.
Breaking Bad, and Better Call Saul in particular, are master classes in setups like these. Many of the episodes will start with what appears to be inconsequential details and by the end is revealed to be the key aspect of whatever shenanigans the characters were doing.
It’s cool you bring that up, breaking bad in particular does something that’s called “in media res” which means “in the middle of things.” Like you said, basically they give you an Easter egg of something that will be interesting later and then back up the story so you’re waiting for it to come up again. It’s almost like giving a piece of the punchline first then going back to set up the joke!
Hey, nice use of the term. It also reminds me of the first episode of the 1997 anime adaptation of Berserk. Without spoiling much, the first episode shows us Guts in what is Conviction arc and then the explanation to why the man we see in the first episode is the way he is for the rest of the show.
Noticing that Anton's hair is messed up and his skin is sweaty upon opening the door to the motel the first time really got me because you automatically assess that he had just murdered the old woman at the counter beforehand. We can believe this due to Anton's negative reaction to "small talk" and when the people in his way ask "too many questions". The old woman at the counter being talkative to Llewelyn as well as slightly stubborn doesn't really strike us at first, but as soon as we see Anton look up to her and her hand shaking on the counter, at that moment we know she's doomed. Idk, just something I thought was cool😁
i really love the juxtaposition between chigurhs aversion to getting his boots bloodied and the repeating imagery of bloody tracks left behind throughout the movie. the first ones we see are of the animal lwelyn shot hunting, eventually leading him to the shootout scene, the second were those of lwelyns himself in the confrontation between him and chigurh. his bloodied footprints gave away a trail for anton to locate him. a really cool foreboding image of his mortality and eventual fate, that as long as hes living, as long as he has a trail to leave anton will follow him and hunt him down, whereas with chigurh he leaves no trace behind. a complete ghost where in every scene he exits leaves not the slightest impression behind. hes smoke
Nice catch. I had not noticed. But now that you mention it, there's another one I can think of. When he strangles the cop at the beginning of the movie, you can see lots of marks on the floor from the cop's struggle. Shoes do leave a mark. It does feel like Anton knows this and purposely leaves them clean, not like an obsessive psychopath, but more like a professional killer, a predator who knows how not to get hunted, or the way you put it... A ghost.
@@Matthiaslipknot I think both. Actions that started with practical reasons, repeated so many times that the original meaning has been lost and only the habit remains. In many ways, I'd say this is like Anton himself: He's clearly human and does human things, but his *humanity* is gone, leaving behind only a shell.
Look at that subtle movie analysis, the tasteful editing of it. Oh my god, it even has insert shots. Honestly though it feels so good to see a video essay that feels like a video.
I think no writer/director mastered this technique better than Billy Wilder. The pocket-mirror in The Apartment is devastating, but his whole filmography is full of little moments like this.
Terrific video. Such a succinct presentation on how powerful setups/payoffs can be. No Country For Old Men takes it one step further in my opinion with its use of the ellipsis as well. We get that sledgehammer of a payoff but we the viewer are left having to create the imagery of Chigurh's action against Carla Jean for ourself in order to even get to the payoff. No matter how many times I watch the movie, part of me will always be in denial of Carla Jean's fate, that somehow she made it. Anyways, I really enjoyed this particular take on its analysis. Looking forward to more of your work to come.
Thank you! I agree, I love a movie that trusts the audience to fill in the blanks, that doesn’t feel the need to spoon feed the story to us and leave some things up to imagination or even up for debate.
That's what a real subversion of expectations looks like to me. That phrase gets used a lot but almost never like this when it's most impactful. The film spends a long time setting up who the characters are, what they're like, how they act. Then it has the complete enormous balls not to show the climactic moment here at all, just to imply it and allowing the watcher, with all their various interpretations of everything that happened so far, to come to their own conclusion. It takes serious craft to see that the audience is desperately going to want to know the answer and to say "haha, nope, you're going to be thinking about then ten years from now in the shower and you'll still be hoping".
This was refreshing, interesting, personal and an extremely fun ride. Such a breath of fresh air when TH-cam video essays these days have become either lengthy rants about someone’s favourite franchise or an excuse to rewatch some cool scenes from your favourite movie with nice music and a calming voice in the background. Keep doing what ur doing, channel is gonna blow up soon!
Man, this is great. Great points, but whats better is showing how YOU approach it, and having humility to analyse and see your own strength and weakness. Talking is great, doing is better. Wish you success my friend!
Thanks! Yeah for me the whole point is trying to put this stuff into practice myself. I’ve learned about filmmaking in theory but actually going out and making stuff has really changed how I see movies entirely!
Fantastic video, man! The best films are the ones that respect the viewer's intelligence. They show and don't tell but only tell when they have to and do it in a way that's still compelling and necessary. They give the audience 2+2 instead of just giving them the number 4. They meticulously show enough to the point that, if you're paying attention to the details they provide, eventually they reward you in ways that more simple films never could. In short, great analysis!
Wow. Incredible analysis and explanation, pointing out details even the most dedicated cinephiles wouldn’t notice. Videos of this quality deserve so much more attention
Earned a new subscriber halfway through the video. I love your style, your appreciation for the craft of filmmaking, and the fact that you use your own work to be critiqued as an example in an overarching narrative thread speaks volumes of your authenticity and your commitment to quality content creation. Can't wait to see what you've done and where you're headed.
Finding this account before 1k dubs feels unreal. The editing the structure and pacing of the video. It’s all something I’d expect in the 500k and up area. Keep it up man I’m glad I found you channel can’t wait to see what else you put out in the future.
Unbelievable talent! I can't wait to see your movies. You understand the essence of film. It's storytelling. So much time, money and energy is wasted yelling fire in an empty theater.
Only after I’ve watched the video I realised it’s only your 4th video on the channel, but despite that this video had a cinemastix feel to it, and something very calming about it. I really appreciate your opinion on what makes a good movie, I love what you said about language. Can’t wait for more from you
honestly one of the best youtube videos i’ve watched for such a small channel. kept me engaged from beginning to end. subscribing feels like i’m betting on gold dust! can’t wait to see you at a 100k! well done.
I loved seeing the thought process behind your short film. The problem solving mindset of "how do I take this shot and make it something rather than the other way around?" was really intriguing.
Lawrence of Arabia has a set up and punch line. It's long. Gassim, an Arab lost in the desert, Lawrence goes back to save him against the advice of the others who say it is written by God that Gassim is dead, and ends with Gassim getting shot by Lawrence to make sure a tribal war doesn't break out, and Anthony Quinn looking at Omar Sharif and saying 'Ah, it was written then!" There is about 40 minutes between the start and the finish of that set up.
As someone who started in literary studies and branched into film analysis later, I gotta point out that the example you used of the Katana scene is equally true in writing for non visual media. Writing scenes with characters doing something distinctively Them is always going to be better characterization than telling us what they're all about -- film makers do that with what's onscreen, writers do it with descriptive action writing. Different technical toolbox but the phenomenon not unique to film.
This was a wonderful watch, an easily digestible lesson on storytelling which doesn't just have to apply to movies. Really well done and I hope to see more from you.
Love your use of Old Country. It’s one of the best examples. But more thanks for clarifying Chekhov’s gun. A lot of video essays using every set-up & payoff as Chekhov’s gun when it’s really not the case. Great work showing the difference.
You should have more subscribers. The way this video was done was so creative and entertaining, and I love how you make a short film with the topic you discuss in the video. Brilliant stuff.
I was blown away when I first saw that scene from No Country. Just a small figure moving in a roughly symmetrical background. The implication was as clear as day.
Solid video! I don’t like to shit on movies, nor do I really jive with the idea that something can be so bad it’s good; however, I do keep a rotating list of 4 movies I refer to as “The Four Horsemovies of the Apocalypse”. These movies have every possible thing they need to succeed, and somehow fail miserably. Great cast, writers, directors, etc. These are my current 4: 1. Serenity (2019) 2. The Book of Henry (2017) 3. Domino (2019) 4. The Snowman (2017)
Love your analysis style. If I may have my input on the subject of suspense: because so many bad movies were made, we forget about Michael Myers. The reason he’s the scariest sociopathic killer is they show him to us in the background. We know he’s there, the antagonist doesn’t. Somebody popping up in the background then disappearing is terrifying. They hid the monster from the character, not us, creating that opened ended tension other movies try to achieve and usually fail at. There’s also that scene where Michael pins a woman against the wall then tilts his heads to the side. It’s like he doesn’t fully understand death. Much like Chigurh and his boots, that scene subtly showed us Michael has quirks and there’s a human inside the sociopath. In this case, a homicidal child that spent his life in solitary confinement fascinated by death. The smallest scenes can leave a big impact. I enjoy your take on analysis. Subscribed Edit: if you’re going to take the path of a film writer, I recommend you read “On Writing” from Stephen King. He doesn’t analyze the plot. There’s a premise then he creates characters. The rest happens organically. Hayao Miyazaki is another good example. He doesn’t plan the plot. He draws pictures then lets it unfold
WOW this video!!! I absolutely love love love the combination of education with implementation, you really nailed this and made it feel like an actual lesson finally.
I'm so glad TH-cam put this video on my feed. I'm a huge fan of this kind of content especially on one of my favourite films. I shall watch your career with great interest.
its crazy that i was watching a completely unrelated video about "Sin City" and the creator was providing evidence to the claim that it could be the best page-to-screen adaptation, in terms of direct translation. When he mentioned that, i thought, "idk i still think No Country For Old Men is the best direct adaptation ever made" upon returning to my home page afterwards, i find this video. i've never watched your channel, i didn't type anything about "No Country For Old Men" i simply THOUGHT it. but i guess the algorithm can do crazy things these days. great video. subbed. (at first the thumbnail made me think u were somehow going to try and claim No Country For Old Men was mediocre. i was ready to throw a fit. im glad that wasnt the case, lol)
To be fair it took me until watch number three or four to put it together, but I think it works as an ambiguous moment if you didn’t pick up on the breadcrumbs. I just love that they gave us the answer but made us work for it!
Love the way you broke this down. I would agree fully. You said it yourself, but I will reiterate this idea of intentionality. Mediocre movies have many “throw-away” shots - shots that just don’t mean anything. Every shot should have a purpose. Set-up and punchline reiterate and highlight this. Good movies take (what looked like) a mediocre movie’s throw away shot, and make it a soon to be purposeful and/or interesting idea.
Okay WOW if you didn’t already earn a subscriber with the first half explaining the No Country for Old Men setups and payoffs. You definitely deserve it for the insanely perfect movie examples you use. All the best iconic but not too obvious scenes from movies to explain your point, Aliens, Good Will Hunting, Get Out, Godfather, Mad Max Fury Road (and Suicide Squad lol thats infamously bad). you hit it out of the park man and thank god the algorithm blessed you
@@brothir I mean it’s the Godfather… Saying it’s a better movie is in no way a slight against No Country which is already a modern classic in its own rights. I’ve never read Mario Puzo’s novel though so I can’t comment on how faithful an adaptation the films are.
I always compare good stories and good writing to jokes. So it's really nice to hear someone acknowledge this. Recently saw Barfly again and I always told people how much I love Bukowski and I've always heard people absolutely hate Bukowski. But he writes poetry to me. And in Barfly it opens up with the sign of the bar, "Golden Horn, a friendly place"... the bartender sits with the newspaper and then we see there is a fight going on in the back. And the movie ends with Chinaski raising his glass "to all my friends, to all my friends, to all my friends"... Chinaski and the guy with the mustache have another fight. Then the bartender sits with the newspaper. A shot of the sign "Golden Horn, a friendly place". It's perfect. And I think people dislike Bukowski so much because they only see the booze, the sex and the violence in his stories and they miss these little comedy gold nuggets.
I very much love how all of your script writing cut out essentially all of the fat. Every bit of this video conveyed the necessary information -- which, itself, was (pointing towards) something very interesting.
I was just talking to a friend about how little set up and payoffs are discussed in screenwriting and filmmaking videos and books despite being so incredibly effective. You could argue that Back To The Future is a perfect movie largely because of it's use of this technique. Edgar Wright once mentioned that he and Simon Pegg studied BTTF intensely before writing Shaun of the Dead which explains so much.
amazing video. Didn't check sub or view count until 7 mins into the vid to notice you only have 2K subs!!?? This is some real quality and I hope that you get recognized by more people soon.
No country for old men has long been one of my favorites and Anton checking his boots after meeting with carla jean never fully clicked with me! I feel like a fool for missing it all these times! Will definitely be going home and really critically watching this movie again tonight. Instant sub after all of this and i look forward to you future work!
It’s “payoffs” not “punchlines” punchlines are specific to stand up comedy. The term “Payoff” is more generally used in novels, films, plays etc. since not all payoffs are intended to be funny.
3:14 I always thought this moment was Anton making sure nobody was hiding (first closing the door to make it look like he left, and then slamming it open to catch anyone hiding who got too confident and assumed he left). But then again, I didn’t read the novel.
So he gets a room down the hall with an identical layout, and then scopes it out like he’s practicing. At one point he even squeezes the wall around the closet door frame to feel how thick it is and whether he can shoot through it, and if you watch the shootout he does shoot though it because he hears someone in the closet! It’s more obvious in the novel, but just goes to show you he’s a methodical killer who knows what he’s doing
Also if you watch the shootout he busts through the door and immediately flips the light on so he can see what he’s shooting, which was what told me he was practicing earlier with the light switch
So bad it's good is really just good to me, my problem is if a movie is forgettable and don't grab me. If I am not grabbed by it I tend to shut off movies, which some may consider a bad practice but I value my time a lot. These are movies that others rave about. It's all subjective when you really boil it down, which again is something people have a trouble grasping with.
Chiguhr takes his boots off in order to muffle his footsteps. I thought this was obvious: silent death. The boot cleanliness 'thing' is reserved solely for a subtle answer to Carla Jean's unknown fate.
Wow, I never noticed that about the boots. I always thought he took his boots off at the motel to muffle his footsteps and never thought any deeper into it
This was excellent! I feel like so often in media analysis there is not enough emphasis placed on the unique language of film. I agree that the often the reason films turn out mediocre is that they are not using filmic language to its fullest.
This was a really good breakdown on what makes scenes work, great job! It comes down to effort and purpose. Mediocre movies copy a great movie‘s homework and the good-bad ones solve an equation by writing a short story on a wet towel.
In as oversaturated genre as filmbro video essays is, and with a film as done-to-death as No Country, you still manage to say something novel, helpful, and entertaining while also pitching your other work as worthwhile- all with the conciseness of a 9 minute video. Good job.
Seriously. High quality video, glad I clicked.
I dislike No Country for Old Men (both the book and the movie) but agreed this is well done
"Show them with the camera" sums it up so well.
Wonderful observation on No Country. And very effectively explained. Another thing is Anton's obssessiveness to keep his shoes clean is also a way of developing character without saying much. It shows his alienating nature, his tendancy of contradicting his own action (as shown in the final scene of the movie). He doesn't think twice about killing others but he is obsessessed with tidiness, orderliness. He is methodical to a point it is unsettling.
Also, this deserves more views! Great video!
He didn't want to keep his shoes clean, he wanted to be silent and leave no bootmarks.
@@BenDover-kt8wmhe’s still tidy and orderly regardless of the reasons why. And why not both simultaneously?They’re not mutually exclusive.
The shot of the wrapper on the counter unveiling itself was genius.
Algorithm did well today 🫡 great video !
Ayy thank you!
Ew
@@FucklifedeadshitUr ew
We’re back again on that side of Film Tube let’s go💯💯💯
Yes indeed! Because they love throwing random stuff in my recommendation list😂
I like how you chose the most minute detail from No Country. The little things like that, the textural details, make the film savory in the long run.
It's bonkers that amazing movies can have hundreds of videos essays made about them with a focus on different things in each essay. It makes you realize how much great movies focus on specific tiny details and the amount of work that goes into every second on film. Movies like No Country, Spiderverse, EEAaO, or Sicario clearly have every minute detail planned and it separates them from good movies into perfect movies.
Breaking Bad, and Better Call Saul in particular, are master classes in setups like these. Many of the episodes will start with what appears to be inconsequential details and by the end is revealed to be the key aspect of whatever shenanigans the characters were doing.
It’s cool you bring that up, breaking bad in particular does something that’s called “in media res” which means “in the middle of things.” Like you said, basically they give you an Easter egg of something that will be interesting later and then back up the story so you’re waiting for it to come up again. It’s almost like giving a piece of the punchline first then going back to set up the joke!
Thinking about the stuffed bear in the pool while reading this.
The box cutter.
Hey, nice use of the term. It also reminds me of the first episode of the 1997 anime adaptation of Berserk. Without spoiling much, the first episode shows us Guts in what is Conviction arc and then the explanation to why the man we see in the first episode is the way he is for the rest of the show.
Whatever chicanery the characters were doing*
Noticing that Anton's hair is messed up and his skin is sweaty upon opening the door to the motel the first time really got me because you automatically assess that he had just murdered the old woman at the counter beforehand. We can believe this due to Anton's negative reaction to "small talk" and when the people in his way ask "too many questions". The old woman at the counter being talkative to Llewelyn as well as slightly stubborn doesn't really strike us at first, but as soon as we see Anton look up to her and her hand shaking on the counter, at that moment we know she's doomed. Idk, just something I thought was cool😁
I always thought Anton took his boots off at the motel so he could walk silently…
Yes!!! exactly, similar to when he cut the lights while outside Moss's hotel room, deceptive.
Me too
Keep it up man. You actually understand what this medium is as opposed to 90% of filmmakers out there.
i really love the juxtaposition between chigurhs aversion to getting his boots bloodied and the repeating imagery of bloody tracks left behind throughout the movie. the first ones we see are of the animal lwelyn shot hunting, eventually leading him to the shootout scene, the second were those of lwelyns himself in the confrontation between him and chigurh. his bloodied footprints gave away a trail for anton to locate him. a really cool foreboding image of his mortality and eventual fate, that as long as hes living, as long as he has a trail to leave anton will follow him and hunt him down, whereas with chigurh he leaves no trace behind. a complete ghost where in every scene he exits leaves not the slightest impression behind. hes smoke
The trail literally needs with chigurh. He’s the final judgment
what about the milk?
Nice catch. I had not noticed. But now that you mention it, there's another one I can think of. When he strangles the cop at the beginning of the movie, you can see lots of marks on the floor from the cop's struggle. Shoes do leave a mark. It does feel like Anton knows this and purposely leaves them clean, not like an obsessive psychopath, but more like a professional killer, a predator who knows how not to get hunted, or the way you put it... A ghost.
@@Matthiaslipknot I think both. Actions that started with practical reasons, repeated so many times that the original meaning has been lost and only the habit remains. In many ways, I'd say this is like Anton himself: He's clearly human and does human things, but his *humanity* is gone, leaving behind only a shell.
That last joke got me nodding my head proud. This is so well-structured and concise. Excellent job.
And it was set up by the other bar jokes. Makes sense
Look at that subtle movie analysis, the tasteful editing of it. Oh my god, it even has insert shots.
Honestly though it feels so good to see a video essay that feels like a video.
Now let's see Paul Allen's video essay
@@adityabhaledar831 Anton... Anton, you're sweating...
@@davidmsirois I'm sorry. I have to return some videotapes.
For more video essays that actually benefit from watching, *Jacob Geller.*
@@adityabhaledar831very nice
I think no writer/director mastered this technique better than Billy Wilder. The pocket-mirror in The Apartment is devastating, but his whole filmography is full of little moments like this.
I agree, and upon reading thought of Hitchcock too.
"Dialogue is a language itself."
That was the punchline.
Terrific video. Such a succinct presentation on how powerful setups/payoffs can be. No Country For Old Men takes it one step further in my opinion with its use of the ellipsis as well. We get that sledgehammer of a payoff but we the viewer are left having to create the imagery of Chigurh's action against Carla Jean for ourself in order to even get to the payoff. No matter how many times I watch the movie, part of me will always be in denial of Carla Jean's fate, that somehow she made it. Anyways, I really enjoyed this particular take on its analysis. Looking forward to more of your work to come.
Thank you! I agree, I love a movie that trusts the audience to fill in the blanks, that doesn’t feel the need to spoon feed the story to us and leave some things up to imagination or even up for debate.
That's what a real subversion of expectations looks like to me. That phrase gets used a lot but almost never like this when it's most impactful. The film spends a long time setting up who the characters are, what they're like, how they act. Then it has the complete enormous balls not to show the climactic moment here at all, just to imply it and allowing the watcher, with all their various interpretations of everything that happened so far, to come to their own conclusion. It takes serious craft to see that the audience is desperately going to want to know the answer and to say "haha, nope, you're going to be thinking about then ten years from now in the shower and you'll still be hoping".
@@fang_xianfulike the ending of The Sopranos
This was refreshing, interesting, personal and an extremely fun ride. Such a breath of fresh air when TH-cam video essays these days have become either lengthy rants about someone’s favourite franchise or an excuse to rewatch some cool scenes from your favourite movie with nice music and a calming voice in the background. Keep doing what ur doing, channel is gonna blow up soon!
Man, this is great. Great points, but whats better is showing how YOU approach it, and having humility to analyse and see your own strength and weakness. Talking is great, doing is better. Wish you success my friend!
I'm so glad I found this video! Love that you showed your short as an example, it really drives home the point you were making.
Thanks! Yeah for me the whole point is trying to put this stuff into practice myself. I’ve learned about filmmaking in theory but actually going out and making stuff has really changed how I see movies entirely!
this is seriously one of the best video essays about film I have seen here on youtube!
Fantastic video, man! The best films are the ones that respect the viewer's intelligence. They show and don't tell but only tell when they have to and do it in a way that's still compelling and necessary. They give the audience 2+2 instead of just giving them the number 4. They meticulously show enough to the point that, if you're paying attention to the details they provide, eventually they reward you in ways that more simple films never could. In short, great analysis!
Wow. Incredible analysis and explanation, pointing out details even the most dedicated cinephiles wouldn’t notice. Videos of this quality deserve so much more attention
Earned a new subscriber halfway through the video. I love your style, your appreciation for the craft of filmmaking, and the fact that you use your own work to be critiqued as an example in an overarching narrative thread speaks volumes of your authenticity and your commitment to quality content creation. Can't wait to see what you've done and where you're headed.
Wow thank you so much! Im definitely excited to keep making stuff!
Finding this account before 1k dubs feels unreal. The editing the structure and pacing of the video. It’s all something I’d expect in the 500k and up area. Keep it up man I’m glad I found you channel can’t wait to see what else you put out in the future.
The slow push from the outside into the bathroom window is a nice touch
Authentic, sincere, intelligent, funny, polished, with something to say. The sky's the limit. Keep going, good luck!
I appreciate that!
Nothing beats learning from an experiment 👍
I just love how you show that payoff could trigger stronger emotions when setup 7:31 is done properly 👍
Thank you! I agree, learning by doing is the best way to go
loved the unique approach to breaking down a film that has been over-analyzed to death, super good stuff.
No Country for Old Men is the best Terminator movie ever made.
Every few days I come back to this video and it’s even better than I remember. I demand more content from this channel… respectfully
This video was phenomenal. Can't wait until the next upload
Thank you! More coming soon 🫡
Unbelievable talent! I can't wait to see your movies. You understand the essence of film. It's storytelling. So much time, money and energy is wasted yelling fire in an empty theater.
Absolutely fantastic video. You deserve to be one of the biggest video essay creators on this platform.
Only after I’ve watched the video I realised it’s only your 4th video on the channel, but despite that this video had a cinemastix feel to it, and something very calming about it. I really appreciate your opinion on what makes a good movie, I love what you said about language. Can’t wait for more from you
My favourite of these punchlines is asides from no country, jo jo rabbits with the constant images of the mother’s shoes. Great video
honestly one of the best youtube videos i’ve watched for such a small channel. kept me engaged from beginning to end. subscribing feels like i’m betting on gold dust! can’t wait to see you at a 100k! well done.
I loved seeing the thought process behind your short film. The problem solving mindset of "how do I take this shot and make it something rather than the other way around?" was really intriguing.
Nicely done. Didn’t realize how much I missed film school until this.
I swear I've seen this movie tons of times and there's always something new I figure out about this movie.
Cant believe you only have 3k followers, your editing is fantastic
Lawrence of Arabia has a set up and punch line. It's long. Gassim, an Arab lost in the desert, Lawrence goes back to save him against the advice of the others who say it is written by God that Gassim is dead, and ends with Gassim getting shot by Lawrence to make sure a tribal war doesn't break out, and Anthony Quinn looking at Omar Sharif and saying 'Ah, it was written then!" There is about 40 minutes between the start and the finish of that set up.
this shit was beautiful, i'm shocked you're only at 3.6k. that algorithm bout to HIT
I did not catch the boots thing when I watched No Country.
As someone who started in literary studies and branched into film analysis later, I gotta point out that the example you used of the Katana scene is equally true in writing for non visual media. Writing scenes with characters doing something distinctively Them is always going to be better characterization than telling us what they're all about -- film makers do that with what's onscreen, writers do it with descriptive action writing. Different technical toolbox but the phenomenon not unique to film.
On the topic of the Coen brothers, this element is so present on the Fargo series too. They really nail the Coen bros style of storytelling.
You can thank the genius Noah Harley for the tv show Fargo. He does some great work
This was a wonderful watch, an easily digestible lesson on storytelling which doesn't just have to apply to movies. Really well done and I hope to see more from you.
Never noticed the pay off of Anton's boots towards the end. You made me see the movie in a new light.
Love your use of Old Country. It’s one of the best examples.
But more thanks for clarifying Chekhov’s gun. A lot of video essays using every set-up & payoff as Chekhov’s gun when it’s really not the case.
Great work showing the difference.
You should have more subscribers. The way this video was done was so creative and entertaining, and I love how you make a short film with the topic you discuss in the video. Brilliant stuff.
I was blown away when I first saw that scene from No Country. Just a small figure moving in a roughly symmetrical background. The implication was as clear as day.
Solid video!
I don’t like to shit on movies, nor do I really jive with the idea that something can be so bad it’s good; however, I do keep a rotating list of 4 movies I refer to as “The Four Horsemovies of the Apocalypse”. These movies have every possible thing they need to succeed, and somehow fail miserably. Great cast, writers, directors, etc. These are my current 4:
1. Serenity (2019)
2. The Book of Henry (2017)
3. Domino (2019)
4. The Snowman (2017)
absolutlely excellent video. one of the rare youtube videos that really teaches you something about filmmaking
I love when TH-cam suggests a great new channel.
All hail the algorithm.
Awesome video, thank you for including captions!
This are the type of videos that will have millions of views in 5 years time. Patience my friend and thank you for sharing and making this video.
Love your analysis style. If I may have my input on the subject of suspense: because so many bad movies were made, we forget about Michael Myers. The reason he’s the scariest sociopathic killer is they show him to us in the background. We know he’s there, the antagonist doesn’t. Somebody popping up in the background then disappearing is terrifying. They hid the monster from the character, not us, creating that opened ended tension other movies try to achieve and usually fail at.
There’s also that scene where Michael pins a woman against the wall then tilts his heads to the side. It’s like he doesn’t fully understand death. Much like Chigurh and his boots, that scene subtly showed us Michael has quirks and there’s a human inside the sociopath. In this case, a homicidal child that spent his life in solitary confinement fascinated by death. The smallest scenes can leave a big impact.
I enjoy your take on analysis. Subscribed
Edit: if you’re going to take the path of a film writer, I recommend you read “On Writing” from Stephen King. He doesn’t analyze the plot. There’s a premise then he creates characters. The rest happens organically. Hayao Miyazaki is another good example. He doesn’t plan the plot. He draws pictures then lets it unfold
It's really clever little cinematic story, even when we saw nothing but the beats. Really good video.
WOW this video!!! I absolutely love love love the combination of education with implementation, you really nailed this and made it feel like an actual lesson finally.
“You’re my favorite customer” 😂
This was really good dude, I’m seriously impressed.
Looking forward to watching this channel grow! Keep ‘em coming
Excellent video! You've highlighted how the subtle can be so powerful! Ironically this video is also like that, SUBSCRIBED!
Watched no country for the first time recently and didn’t notice that about his boots… epic detail, and great video!
I'm so glad TH-cam put this video on my feed. I'm a huge fan of this kind of content especially on one of my favourite films. I shall watch your career with great interest.
Great video man, I learned a lot from it; keep up the great work!
Thanks! I’ll do my best🫡
its crazy that i was watching a completely unrelated video about "Sin City" and the creator was providing evidence to the claim that it could be the best page-to-screen adaptation, in terms of direct translation. When he mentioned that, i thought, "idk i still think No Country For Old Men is the best direct adaptation ever made"
upon returning to my home page afterwards, i find this video.
i've never watched your channel, i didn't type anything about "No Country For Old Men" i simply THOUGHT it.
but i guess the algorithm can do crazy things these days.
great video.
subbed.
(at first the thumbnail made me think u were somehow going to try and claim No Country For Old Men was mediocre. i was ready to throw a fit. im glad that wasnt the case, lol)
This was a great vid, and congrats on making your first short! Keep going!!
Holy moly that's such a great detail to pick up - Anton checking his boots at the front door. Ashamed to admit that I never picked that up!
To be fair it took me until watch number three or four to put it together, but I think it works as an ambiguous moment if you didn’t pick up on the breadcrumbs. I just love that they gave us the answer but made us work for it!
Love the way you broke this down. I would agree fully. You said it yourself, but I will reiterate this idea of intentionality. Mediocre movies have many “throw-away” shots - shots that just don’t mean anything. Every shot should have a purpose. Set-up and punchline reiterate and highlight this. Good movies take (what looked like) a mediocre movie’s throw away shot, and make it a soon to be purposeful and/or interesting idea.
Okay WOW if you didn’t already earn a subscriber with the first half explaining the No Country for Old Men setups and payoffs. You definitely deserve it for the insanely perfect movie examples you use. All the best iconic but not too obvious scenes from movies to explain your point, Aliens, Good Will Hunting, Get Out, Godfather, Mad Max Fury Road (and Suicide Squad lol thats infamously bad).
you hit it out of the park man and thank god the algorithm blessed you
No Country is probably my favorite movie. As perfect an adaptation as possible.
I counter with The Godfather, which is a better movie at any rate.
@@brothir I mean it’s the Godfather… Saying it’s a better movie is in no way a slight against No Country which is already a modern classic in its own rights. I’ve never read Mario Puzo’s novel though so I can’t comment on how faithful an adaptation the films are.
@@DoctorSessWell i tjink Puzo wrote the script,
@@finnandcork yes you’re right, he co-wrote the screenplay with Coppola
Im a prof actor in Russia, trained in California,
long ago,
this should have been my classes. Well done.
like your
mind
I always compare good stories and good writing to jokes. So it's really nice to hear someone acknowledge this.
Recently saw Barfly again and I always told people how much I love Bukowski and I've always heard people absolutely hate Bukowski.
But he writes poetry to me. And in Barfly it opens up with the sign of the bar, "Golden Horn, a friendly place"... the bartender sits with the newspaper and then we see there is a fight going on in the back.
And the movie ends with Chinaski raising his glass "to all my friends, to all my friends, to all my friends"... Chinaski and the guy with the mustache have another fight. Then the bartender sits with the newspaper. A shot of the sign "Golden Horn, a friendly place". It's perfect. And I think people dislike Bukowski so much because they only see the booze, the sex and the violence in his stories and they miss these little comedy gold nuggets.
Man, I need to check that gun in my story more. Great video by the way!
Really enjoyed the analysis on set ups.
You picked excellent examples.
👍👍
I always figured Chigurh took off his boots in order to make sure that he had quiet footsteps.
I very much love how all of your script writing cut out essentially all of the fat. Every bit of this video conveyed the necessary information -- which, itself, was (pointing towards) something very interesting.
I was just talking to a friend about how little set up and payoffs are discussed in screenwriting and filmmaking videos and books despite being so incredibly effective. You could argue that Back To The Future is a perfect movie largely because of it's use of this technique. Edgar Wright once mentioned that he and Simon Pegg studied BTTF intensely before writing Shaun of the Dead which explains so much.
Yep BTTF is a master-class is set up/pay off. There are few scenes in it that have neither.
amazing video. Didn't check sub or view count until 7 mins into the vid to notice you only have 2K subs!!?? This is some real quality and I hope that you get recognized by more people soon.
The best setups are the simplest
I remember the entire audience collectively hiss in their breath when the nail was pulled up in A Quiet Place
Nice exposition. You have a good narration voice. For your short film - a color scheme and more sound design focus would emphasize your plot points.
No country for old men has long been one of my favorites and Anton checking his boots after meeting with carla jean never fully clicked with me! I feel like a fool for missing it all these times! Will definitely be going home and really critically watching this movie again tonight. Instant sub after all of this and i look forward to you future work!
subscribed my man. this was incredible. can't wait for more
This is such a well made video! You are on your way! Just keep going
I never noticed he checked his boots after he left the house. I guess that wraps things up if we had any doubt
Thoroughly enjoyed this. Thank you!
It’s “payoffs” not “punchlines” punchlines are specific to stand up comedy. The term “Payoff” is more generally used in novels, films, plays etc. since not all payoffs are intended to be funny.
Awesome video. I appreciate your taste. I love no country for old men and feel like a fool for never noticing Anton checking his boots.
3:14 I always thought this moment was Anton making sure nobody was hiding (first closing the door to make it look like he left, and then slamming it open to catch anyone hiding who got too confident and assumed he left). But then again, I didn’t read the novel.
That's exactly what I thought also.
So he gets a room down the hall with an identical layout, and then scopes it out like he’s practicing. At one point he even squeezes the wall around the closet door frame to feel how thick it is and whether he can shoot through it, and if you watch the shootout he does shoot though it because he hears someone in the closet! It’s more obvious in the novel, but just goes to show you he’s a methodical killer who knows what he’s doing
Also if you watch the shootout he busts through the door and immediately flips the light on so he can see what he’s shooting, which was what told me he was practicing earlier with the light switch
@@GrantDougharty
Great attention to detail. I shared OP's interpretation for years, but yours makes more sense.
So bad it's good is really just good to me, my problem is if a movie is forgettable and don't grab me. If I am not grabbed by it I tend to shut off movies, which some may consider a bad practice but I value my time a lot. These are movies that others rave about. It's all subjective when you really boil it down, which again is something people have a trouble grasping with.
Chiguhr takes his boots off in order to muffle his footsteps. I thought this was obvious: silent death.
The boot cleanliness 'thing' is reserved solely for a subtle answer to Carla Jean's unknown fate.
I also thought he left and came back in the room in case someone was hiding
Well done. I also never got that Antione Chigur was death, and I read the book. Now I feel dumb
Wow, I never noticed that about the boots. I always thought he took his boots off at the motel to muffle his footsteps and never thought any deeper into it
Immediately subscribed to your channel. Absolutely underrated!! Excellent job my friend
This was excellent! I feel like so often in media analysis there is not enough emphasis placed on the unique language of film. I agree that the often the reason films turn out mediocre is that they are not using filmic language to its fullest.
Excellent video, Grant. Creative, educational and executed to a high level.
Terrific subject for an essay, glad the almighty algorithm gave me this video. Subscribed and looking forward to seeing more from you.
This was a really good breakdown on what makes scenes work, great job! It comes down to effort and purpose. Mediocre movies copy a great movie‘s homework and the good-bad ones solve an equation by writing a short story on a wet towel.
1:12 "I'm only here to talk about one thing"... immediately names two things.
Outstanding punchline at the end I appreciate that more than I can even let you know