True Grit (2010)

December 22, 2010 (US) • Drama, Adventure, Western • 110m

Overview

Following the murder of her father by a hired hand, a 14-year-old farm girl sets out to capture the killer. To aid her, she hires the toughest U.S. Marshal she can find—a man with 'true grit'—Reuben J. 'Rooster' Cogburn.

Directors

Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

Writers

Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, Charles Portis

Top Billed

Jeff Bridges

Keywords

bounty hunter based on novel or book father murder loss of loved one texas ranger arkansas alcoholism remake betrayal eye patch somber

Where to watch

Free / Included

fuboTV

Paramount Plus Premium

Paramount Plus Essential

Paramount+ Amazon Channel

YouTube TV

Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel

Rent

Buy

Top Billed Cast

Jeff Bridges

Rooster Cogburn

Hailee Steinfeld

Mattie Ross

Matt Damon

LaBoeuf

Josh Brolin

Tom Chaney

Barry Pepper

Lucky Ned Pepper

Dakin Matthews

Col. Stonehill

Jarlath Conroy

Undertaker

Paul Rae

Emmett Quincy

Domhnall Gleeson

Moon (The Kid)

Elizabeth Marvel

40-Year-Old Mattie

Roy Lee Jones

Yarnell

Ed Corbin

Bear Man

Leon Russom

Sheriff

Bruce Green

Harold Parmalee

Candyce Hinkle

Boarding House Landlady

Peter Leung

Mr. Lee

Don Pirl

Cole Younger

Joe Stevens

Cross-examining Lawyer

David Lipman

First Lawyer

Jake Walker

Judge Parker

Orlando Storm Smart

Stableboy

Ty Mitchell

Ferryman

Nicholas Sadler

Repentant Condemned Man

Scott Sowers

Unrepentant Condemned Man

Jonathan Joss

Condemned Indian

Maggie A. Goodman

Woman at Hanging

Brandon Sanderson

Indian Youth at Bagby's

Ruben Nakai Campana

Indian Youth at Bagby's

James Brolin

Frank James (uncredited)

J.K. Simmons

J. Noble Daggett (voice) (uncredited)

Vivian Kalinov

Frontier Woman (uncredited)

Crew

Joel Coen

Director

Roger Deakins

Director of Photography

Ethan Coen

Screenplay

Ethan Coen

Director

Joel Coen

Screenplay

Jennifer Lamb

Stunts

Joel Coen

Producer

Jess Gonchor

Production Design

Ethan Coen

Producer

Mary Zophres

Costume Design

Scott Rudin

Producer

Ellen Chenoweth

Casting

Lori DeLapp

Costume Supervisor

Stefan Dechant

Art Direction

Nancy Haigh

Set Decoration

Thomas Nellen

Makeup Department Head

Craig Branham

Stunts

Pedro Barquin

Stunts

Scout Hendrickson

Stunts

Loyd Catlett

Stunts

Mike Watson

Stunts

Tony Lee Boggs

Stunts

Vince Deadrick Jr.

Stunts

Monty Stuart

Stunts

Ian Mclaughlin

Stunts

Paul Crow Willis

Stunts

Thomas E. Bentley

Stunts

Danny Downey

Stunts

Doran Ingram

Stunts

Brian Brown

Stunts

Casey O'Neill

Stunt Double

Mickey Giacomazzi

Stunts

Jery Hewitt

Stunt Coordinator

Willie Weber

Utility Stunts

Tim Buchanan

Stunts

Ethan Coen

Editor

Joel Coen

Editor

Christina Ann Wilson

Supervising Art Director

Troy Breeding

Key Makeup Artist

Adele Plauche

Set Designer

Chris Napolitano

Chief Lighting Technician

Kay Georgiou

Hair Department Head

Tom Ward

Construction Coordinator

Mitch Lillian

Key Grip

John K.D. Graham

Lighting Technician

Christien Tinsley

Makeup Effects Designer

Christine Beveridge

Makeup Artist

Beate Petruccelli

Key Makeup Artist

Erik Untersee

Rigging Grip

Phillip Renke

Rigging Grip

Roger Deakins

Camera Operator

Marcos Romero

Animation

Greg Orloff

Sound Re-Recording Mixer

Donald R. Howe Jr.

First Assistant Camera

Jo Edna Boldin

Local Casting

Gershon Hinkson

Assistant Editor

Ryan Sivley

Animation

Steve Griffith

Visual Effects Producer

Joel Dougherty

Foley Editor

Richard Sutherland

CG Supervisor

Skip Lievsay

Supervising Sound Editor

Emily Egge

Set Costumer

Skip Lievsay

Sound Re-Recording Mixer

Jarrette Moats

Art Department Coordinator

Rick Marroquin

Dolly Grip

Deborah Ball

Hairstylist

Jason Keene

Rigging Grip

Betsy Magruder

First Assistant Director

Wilson Webb

Still Photographer

Rich Bond

Rigging Grip

Leigh Anne Montaño

Art Department Coordinator

Jeff B. Adams Jr.

Set Designer

Paul Elliott

Camera Operator

Andy Harris

First Assistant Camera

Lorey Sebastian

Still Photographer

Keith Walters

Property Master

Kevin Fahey

Rigging Grip

Bruce Hamme

Dolly Grip

David O. Rogers

Assistant Editor

Elaine Wu

Animation

Geordie Sheffer

Key Hair Stylist

Jacenda Burkett

Makeup Artist

Craig Wadlin

Rigging Grip

Steve Cremin

Special Effects Coordinator

Jay Wilkinson

Sound Effects Editor

Bren Cook

Ager/Dyer

Kenton Jakub

ADR Editor

Janice Janecek

Ager/Dyer

Erica Ciaglia

Seamstress

Justin Johnson

Digital Effects Supervisor

Vincent Cirelli

Visual Effects Supervisor

Nick Damico

Visual Effects Technical Director

Katy Wood

Dialogue Editor

Pete Stockton

Rigging Grip

Dominick De Rasmo

Ager/Dyer

Thomas Johnston

Script Supervisor

Marko Costanzo

Foley

Loan Phan

Digital Intermediate

Randall Balsmeyer

Title Designer

Pimentel A. Raphael

Animation Supervisor

Byron Wilson

ADR Editor

Carol Demarti

Ager/Dyer

Todd Kasow

Music Editor

Byron Wilson

Dialogue Editor

Karen Ruth Getchell

Production Supervisor

Marie A.K. McMaster

Casting Associate

Amelia Rasche McCarthy

Casting Associate

Pavel Pranevsky

CG Supervisor

Charley Gilleran

Rigging Grip

Katie Godwin

Visual Effects Coordinator

Catherine Hughes

Visual Effects Coordinator

Marla Neto Henshaw

Visual Effects Coordinator

Randall L. Johnson

Boom Operator

Craig Berkey

Sound Re-Recording Mixer

Cassidy Vick Hice

Stunt Double

Eliza Coleman

Stunts

Charles Portis

Novel

David Ellison

Executive Producer

Paul Schwake

Executive Producer

Steven Spielberg

Executive Producer

Robert Graf

Executive Producer

Megan Ellison

Executive Producer

Douglas Axtell

Production Sound Mixer

Carter Burwell

Original Music Composer

Elliott Hostetter

On Set Dresser

Craig Berkey

Sound Designer

Peter Kurland

Production Sound Mixer

Reviews

Matt Golden

July 21, 2013

Over their storied career, the Coen Brothers have made some of the most original, most iconoclastic, and most critically-acclaimed films of all time. They've tackled adaptations (No Country for Old Men, O Brother, Where Art Thou?) and remakes (The Ladykillers) before, of course, but even these films have borne the brothers' unmistakable mark of originality, their skewed vision of the world, and their cynical, sarcastic sense of humor.

What, then, to make of True Grit?

It's termed a re-adaptation of the original Charles Portis novel, a "re-imagining," in the parlance of our time. One is hardly able to discuss the film without the spectre of John Wayne, however: the best-known adaptation of the book was one of the film legend's definitive roles, one of those cultural touchstones that rarely if ever are engineered. Discussion of that film invariably centers on Wayne and his performance: a washed-up, forgotten cowpoke that seemed tailor-made for Wayne to draw on his position at the time. A direct predecessor of Mickey Rourke and The Wrestler.

I'll admit that it was the Coens' pedigree that moved me to see this film. I've by nature little interest in Westerns, but despite producing a few lesser films (I'm looking at you, Burn After Reading), the Coens' sheer talent, along with the casting of Jeff Bridges in the John Wayne role, had me intrigued.

The story is simple and straightforward: The father of young Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) is murdered by a two-bit criminal (Josh Brolin), and she takes it upon herself to see him brought to justice. To that end, she hires a reputedly ferocious US Marshal named Rueben "Rooster" Cogburn (Jeff Bridges), while a prideful Texas Ranger (Matt Damon) tags along, hoping to bring the perpetrator to justice for a big reward.

And that's it, really. Completely absent is the trademark Coen plotting, convoluted subplots that twist and turn over onto themselves as though the script were one enormous Möbius strip (Möbius script?). Gone are the defiance of genre definitions, the satirical take on stories, the feeling of the brothers Coen peering through the camera lens at their subjects as though they're studying specimens in a jar. This is straightforward filmmaking, telling a simple tale with all the incredible talent and creative power the Coens command.

So what's not missing, then, are the richness of character, impeccable performances, beautiful cinematography and arresting score that are the other hallmarks of a Coen film. Attention is naturally centered on Jeff Bridges, having the audacity to take on one of the defining performances of one of the most famous actors ever. Bridges doesn't attempt to mimic Wayne. He crawls into this character and wears him like a suit. A hairy, shaggy, smelly suit. But Bridges inverts the typical presentation of such a character: instead of offering the audience with a cold, unfeeling badass whose heart is gradually thawed by the presence of a precocious youngster, this Cogburn is introduced as a shiftless layabout with a reputation who seems to have all but given up on such activities in favor of sleeping and boozing, the events of the film conspiring to scrape away that useless crust to reveal the force of nature beneath. Matt Damon, an actor who's never been in a Coens film before but seems as though he should have, also offers a great performance as the proud and buffoonish Texas Ranger LeBeouf, as do Barry Pepper and Josh Brolin in their short but effective appearances as heavies.

But the yeoman's work lies not on Bridges' grimy, slouched shoulders. Instead, our focus is on fourteen-year-old Mattie Ross, and the performance given by fourteen-year-old Hailee Steinfeld is, in short, one-of-if-not-the finest performance I've seen in quite a long time. Not content with giving such an incredible performance as a young teenager, this is, to boot, Steinfeld's first film performance. Steinfeld's Mattie Ross is smart, wily, mature, childish, scared, brave, and a force of nature in her own right. She has been wronged, she will see that wrong redressed, and nothing will stand in her way. An early scene in which she negotiates with a trader for horses and money is not only hilarious but revealing, one of the best character introductions in film history.

Such an unexpectedly straightforward film from the Coens deserves an equally straightforward judgment: I truly loved this film. There is so much greatness contained within it, from the powerhouse performances of Bridges and Steinfeld to the dark, touching, hilarious script, to Roger Deakins' breathtaking cinematography, to Carter Burwell's haunting score comprised of reorchestrations of classic hymns. It's one of the most perfect films I've ever seen. This is the second fantastic remake I've seen this year, the second to eclipse the original (the first being the superlative Let Me In). If you're wondering whether or not to see this film, wait no longer: go immediately to your nearest theater and buy a ticket. Speaking for myself: I can't wait to see it again.

show less

Dark Jedi

⭐ 8/10

April 19, 2018

Some people have said that this film followed the book better than the original one with John Wayne. I have not read the book but I must say that I did not feel that there was that much difference between the John Wayne version and this one. Sure, there was a difference in the details but the main elements was pretty much the same. There was an epilogue on the end which was a tad more sad, but certainly not misplaced, than in the original film.

… read the rest.

CinemaSerf

⭐ 7/10

September 11, 2024

There's not much point in comparing this to John Wayne's version from 1969. In may ways it's similar - especially the dialogue - but in most it's a completely different telling of the story of the determined young "Mattie" (Hailee Steinfeld) whose father has been slain by "Chaney" (Josh Brolin) and who has now engaged the services of the curmudgeonly US Marshal "Rooster" (Jeff Bridges) to track him down. They are not the only folks looking for this man. "LaBoeuf" (Matt Damon) - a Texas Ranger - is also on his trail and so after a rocky start this trio set off in search of the man, now reportedly hooked up with the lawless "Ned Pepper" (Barry Pepper). What now ensues sees these three people, quite different in nature, spar and spat as they hone in on their quarry. Though I felt Damon rather underplayed the charismatic Texan, there's a solid effort here from Bridges who manages to imbue his character with a stubborn decency born out of experience and, I thought, a certain respect for this already well established role. The writing provides for some light-heartedness and Steinfeld delivers quite well too as the glue that holds the plot together as it builds to a menacing denouement that is altogether more plausible than the earlier iteration. The supporting cast chip in well too, with Dakin Matthews also quite entertaining as the hard-as-nails horse trader beaten into submission by her frequent references to a lawyer who can conquer all-comers. The photography grandly captures the scale of their trek and the beauty of their territory and there's a steady development of the story keeping the pace steady for just shy of two hours of this characterful adventure. It's not, for me, as good as the original - but it's a new look at the Western genre peppered with plenty of bile and bullets that works well.

show less

daniel_carr

⭐ 3/10

December 23, 2025

Another movie that let me down having one of my favorite actors Matt Damon and yet such a huge dissappointment. Like someone had a great idea sold it to the studio, then started the movie and forgot to write the story, just made it up as they went along. Seriously guys, doesn't matter if it's a book, TV show, movie or comic if you start with a good story then doesn't matter if you tell it around the campfire it's going to be great in any format.