Reviews by Matt

Hype is a dangerous thing. It can either work for you or against you. Think about every time you were so excited for something only to have it disappoint you. As a movie fan I try not to let hype get to me. I like to go in and be able to form my own opinions about a movie. I do not read reviews or listen to podcasts that review movies that I plan on seeing before I go. Once I go I like to see how their opinions differed from my own. But no matter how hard I try, every now and then, I let the hype get to me and sometimes it effects how I watch a movie.

That is what happened with “True Grit.”

When her father is murdered by a man he hired, Mattie (Hallie Steinfeld) sets out to get justice. She hires U.S. Marshall “Rooster” Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) to capture Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin) and bring him to justice. One of Mattie’s conditions is that she accompanies him to see that Chaney is captured. Along the way they meet up with Texas Ranger LaBoeuf (Matt Damon) and the three go on the hunt for Clancy.

Yes I had this movie hyped up for me, but I still put it at No. 3 on my top 10 of 2010. The truth is that I did not love it as much as I felt I should have. Because of what I had heard on a podcast, I went into “True Grit” expecting to be blown away. I was not, even though I really liked the movie.

Bridges and Damon have proven that they have what it takes to carry movies and win Oscars. They do another solid job here and are a great pairing. The true surprise is Hallie Steinfeld. No 14-years-old should be able to do what she does in this movie. She easily gives two veteran, Oscar winning actors a run for their money. She shares the screen with these two stars and holds her own.

Mattie is such a strong character. She has strong convictions and is willing to fight for what she believes is right. One thing that I heard that I do agree with is that every girl should see this movie. Mattie is a character they should see and learn from.

I let the hype for “True Grit” get to me and it jaded my view of the movie. I felt I should have been blown away by this movie and I let that feeling carry too much weight. The movie is still really good and worth a trip to the theater…just be careful and, as Public Enemy sang, “don’t believe the hype.”

8 out of 10
Rated PG-13 for some intense sequences of western violence including disturbing images
110 min