Saying they grew up on Disney movies as kids, the Coen Brothers note that their new film, True Grit, opening Dec. 22 with a PG-13 rating, is “tonally different than what we’ve done before,” Joel Cohen told USA Today.
The brothers told the newspaper they wanted to make the kind of movie that they enjoyed as kids, and they say the holiday release date – typical of more family-friendly fare – is appropriate. “We thought that seemed to make sense, because it is a young-adult adventure story,” Ethan Coen said.
Their version is darker than the 1969 version, starring John Wayne, but still has a “winking playfulness,” according to the newspaper, with much of the film playing as a comedy. “That’s something people do associate with our movies,” says Joel Coen, “the fact that there is a humorous element.” The brothers said they took much of the humorous dialogue straight from the 1968 novel by Charles Portis. “There’s a formality to it,” Ethan says. “And no one uses contractions.”
