How does the film introduce the main three characters through film form and foreshadowing moments?
The first character to be introduced in No Country For Old Men is the Sheriff, played by Tommy Lee Jones. Instead of visual representation of this character, we first hear his monologue in a voice-over. This is combined with establishing shots of Western landscapes, which conveys an unchanged, timeless feel which contrasts to the narrative of the story-line. He begins with a personal anecdote, to convey his own personal thoughts and feelings which gives us an insight into his character. It's as if we know him before we have even seen him and highlights him as the 'good' figure that tells us who to side with. He speaks of the past in an nostalgic way that reflects how he makes decisions, since his views are focused on the past time and contrasts him to the other two main characters which we see later. Whereas modern cops will be aware of the use of guns, the Sheriff maintains the old values of power by focusing on the smaller qualities, he shows this in 'never even wore a gun'. This is different from the other characters, who use weapons consistently to show dominance. The violence of a 14 year old biy who murders a potential lover has made a great impact, for he claims he would kill again for no reason. This is similar to the timeline to the villain of the film, who's only way of reason is a coin toss. He also speaks of relatives, his father and grandfather, and how the title of Sheriff has been passed down the family line, showing how important this job is to him (and makes the final circumstances even sadder by him quitting the force).
Through the Sheriff's monologue, the character Anton Chigurh is revealed. The voice-over uses second person to guide the audience to focus on the physical actions of a sheriff leading a handcuffed man to the car. The handcuffed man's face is never revealed until the moment of importance, which highlights his status of character, by him being the villain of the film. For example, one shot in the car shows the man, Chigurh, to be in shadow at the back, building up the tension of how violent his crimes are. This contrasts to the light reflecting onto a Sheriff's badge, brightening it into focus, and highlighting the difference between them. To see Chigurh arrested and submissive at the beginning differs from the normal ending that the audience is used to and enables them to think whether this will change. There is a cut from the arrest to the a slow zoom of the sheriff facing the camera and Chigurh on the right side in the background, face still in shadow. The slow zoom makes us aware of Chigurh's movements and causes tension to the audience due to dramatic irony. The swiftness and quietness of his movements make us aware that he has done this before, since he knows exactly what to do and causes no suspicion. The brutality of his next actions shock the audience through fast paced action. The handcuffs which Chigurh has are thrown around the Sheriff's neck pull him with a force to slam onto the floor, Chirgurh on his back with the Sheriff struggling to breathe. The audio adds to the scenerio since the lack of music enhances the slam of the bodies hitting the floor, the sound of the Sheriff choking and Chigurh's breath of relief. It makes the audience uncomfortable due to the sounds of someone being in pain and then the visual impact of a mass amount of blood. This is a big contrast to the scenic establishing shots at the beginning to a violence, which sets up Chigurh's characterisation for the rest of the film.
The final main character to be revealed is Moss, who is first shown to be saying the exact same line which Chigurh had finished saying - 'hold still'. This links his character to Chigurh, showing that their fates are entwined yet showing how different they are since Chigurh is about to murder a man whereas Moss is hunting, yet fails (linking to the end of the film). He is more careful and precise about his movements unlike Chigurh's swiftness, however he misses, foreshadowing his future. The distance of his shot links to how close he is to the main story-line, that he was never supposed to find the money but came across it by accident. Even in Moss' introduction, there are shots of blood, reflecting the constant theme throughout. The physicality of his character reflects his past story-line, for example the way he holds his gun links to his past of being a Vietnam War veteran. Each of the characters are presented in various different ways which reflect their characterisation, some more obvious than others, such as Chigurh's vivid violence contrasts the mysterious good morals of the Sheriff. They each lead into their story-lines in a way which explains to the audience just what they need to decide who's morally good or not.
The first character to be introduced in No Country For Old Men is the Sheriff, played by Tommy Lee Jones. Instead of visual representation of this character, we first hear his monologue in a voice-over. This is combined with establishing shots of Western landscapes, which conveys an unchanged, timeless feel which contrasts to the narrative of the story-line. He begins with a personal anecdote, to convey his own personal thoughts and feelings which gives us an insight into his character. It's as if we know him before we have even seen him and highlights him as the 'good' figure that tells us who to side with. He speaks of the past in an nostalgic way that reflects how he makes decisions, since his views are focused on the past time and contrasts him to the other two main characters which we see later. Whereas modern cops will be aware of the use of guns, the Sheriff maintains the old values of power by focusing on the smaller qualities, he shows this in 'never even wore a gun'. This is different from the other characters, who use weapons consistently to show dominance. The violence of a 14 year old biy who murders a potential lover has made a great impact, for he claims he would kill again for no reason. This is similar to the timeline to the villain of the film, who's only way of reason is a coin toss. He also speaks of relatives, his father and grandfather, and how the title of Sheriff has been passed down the family line, showing how important this job is to him (and makes the final circumstances even sadder by him quitting the force).
Through the Sheriff's monologue, the character Anton Chigurh is revealed. The voice-over uses second person to guide the audience to focus on the physical actions of a sheriff leading a handcuffed man to the car. The handcuffed man's face is never revealed until the moment of importance, which highlights his status of character, by him being the villain of the film. For example, one shot in the car shows the man, Chigurh, to be in shadow at the back, building up the tension of how violent his crimes are. This contrasts to the light reflecting onto a Sheriff's badge, brightening it into focus, and highlighting the difference between them. To see Chigurh arrested and submissive at the beginning differs from the normal ending that the audience is used to and enables them to think whether this will change. There is a cut from the arrest to the a slow zoom of the sheriff facing the camera and Chigurh on the right side in the background, face still in shadow. The slow zoom makes us aware of Chigurh's movements and causes tension to the audience due to dramatic irony. The swiftness and quietness of his movements make us aware that he has done this before, since he knows exactly what to do and causes no suspicion. The brutality of his next actions shock the audience through fast paced action. The handcuffs which Chigurh has are thrown around the Sheriff's neck pull him with a force to slam onto the floor, Chirgurh on his back with the Sheriff struggling to breathe. The audio adds to the scenerio since the lack of music enhances the slam of the bodies hitting the floor, the sound of the Sheriff choking and Chigurh's breath of relief. It makes the audience uncomfortable due to the sounds of someone being in pain and then the visual impact of a mass amount of blood. This is a big contrast to the scenic establishing shots at the beginning to a violence, which sets up Chigurh's characterisation for the rest of the film.
The final main character to be revealed is Moss, who is first shown to be saying the exact same line which Chigurh had finished saying - 'hold still'. This links his character to Chigurh, showing that their fates are entwined yet showing how different they are since Chigurh is about to murder a man whereas Moss is hunting, yet fails (linking to the end of the film). He is more careful and precise about his movements unlike Chigurh's swiftness, however he misses, foreshadowing his future. The distance of his shot links to how close he is to the main story-line, that he was never supposed to find the money but came across it by accident. Even in Moss' introduction, there are shots of blood, reflecting the constant theme throughout. The physicality of his character reflects his past story-line, for example the way he holds his gun links to his past of being a Vietnam War veteran. Each of the characters are presented in various different ways which reflect their characterisation, some more obvious than others, such as Chigurh's vivid violence contrasts the mysterious good morals of the Sheriff. They each lead into their story-lines in a way which explains to the audience just what they need to decide who's morally good or not.
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