True Grit

Jeff Bridges. The real Rooster Cogburn.

Joel and Ethan Coen are regarded as some of the greatest directors to have emerged from America during the 1980s. Their most recent release was a re-interpretation of Charles Portis' novel True Grit, previously made in 1969 with John Wayne. Here we have some amazon.co.uk reviewers who've got in with the bad reviews particularly early:

someone has earlier said its not a remake but it IS (It isn't. It is influenced in some ways by what came before, but it is mostly taken directly from the novel.) and a real bad one at that (In what way is it bad? Of course, I'm sure you'll expand upon this...), this is such a poor remake its almost unreal to the extent i dont think any amount of blue ray/sound quality or dvd extras will change that fact im afraid to say (That sentence was so awful I don't think any amount of colour changes and font types will improve it... That's the sort of point you just made. Why would DVD extras or blu-ray quality make a bad film good? Pimp would still be a crime against cinema no matter what the extras were. Unless they involved Danny Dyer's face being cut by one of his ex-girlfriends...)

Yes there are some different scenes and reversal of fortunes for characters (So not really a full remake, then is it? More of a 'reimagining' like the Coen's said...),  but soooooooo much of the movie is almost scene for scene and word for word exactly identical which is cringe worthy (The words might be the same because they're from the book... And quite a lot of them are different as well), i dont think i will be buying this at ANY price (Really? But I thought that with your one star review you'd be paying full price for 5 copies...) and the only advice i could give others that like westerns is wait for bargain basement bin (Surely those who like westerns can make up their own minds?)

If the coen bros wanted to make a good western with the fantastic resources they had why not a sensible follow on movie from rooster cogburn? (A sequel? To a film that is over 40 years old? How would that work? And anyway, myself and almost all critics felt that this was an excellent film. Whereas the original was just so-so)

If you felt that the previous review was a little too shallow, then you'll love this one...:

If you have ever seen the John Wayne version of this film do not watch this one! (Oh no! But I've seen most of the John Wayne version! I'm going to explode!) By comparision it is very poor and badly acted. (By comparison, this is a much better film. The direction is a lot less staid and dull and this version does not pull any punches at the end like Duke's version did. Oh, and if Jeff Bridges were Manchester United or Real Madrid or some team like that, John Wayne would be a primary school's B team. Wayne couldn't act his way out of a paper bag.)

And now we have some reviews from across the pond:

Not a BAD movie, but not good: (So, even though it isn't 'bad' you give it one star? Wouldn't 3 stars or something be more appropriate? Moron.) 

I've seen so many westerns for so long now (You know that sentence doesn't make any sense right?) and the original "True Grit" is one of my favourites. (Really? That film is? But its so dull...)
I saw this re-make (It's a reimagining or a reinterpretation of the source text, not a remake) at a supermax, giant screen theatre and went into it with no preconceived notions. (Hmm... I'm doubtful if I'm honest)
I did like the young girl's part taken on by Halie Hailee Steinfeld. She was very good for an actress that young. (She was indeed. At least we agree on something then)
But Matt was typical Matt and seemed to be miscast. (And yet myself and others feel he was excellent, and actually played against type, as a slightly lascivious greedy character)
As for Bridges part of Rooster, well, too bad he was so different from the original character (Yeah, how dare they make him different to the Duke! Especially as he is closer to how he was in the original novel... Those bastards!). Could not understand most of his slurred dialog (That is, I suppose, a valid complaint. I did have to pay attention, but he isn't incomprehensible). His performance seemed flat and uninspired. (John Wayne was flat and uninspired. Indeed, he was flat and uninspired in almost everything he ever appeared in. Jeff Bridges was a joy to behold.)
Just not as great a movie as it was advertised to be. Sorry but i gave it one star and would not recommend it. (Your reviewing system is absolutely bloody awful. One star should be reserved for utter crap like Pimp and Sex and the City 2.)

And one more, to finish us off:

I love western movies, but this truly had to be the most cheezy, boring,and dull remake of a classic I've ever seen (If you think this was cheesy, then you really are clueless.). Here are many more problems with this movie below:

1. The little girl is way too anoying that throughout the first 10 minutes you wished she would leave the screen (You might have. But I didn't. Steinfeld was excellent and thoroughly deserved the nominations she received.). Instead she's the main character, so your stuck with a whinning whining little brat (She really isn't though. What do you class as whining?) the whole wasted time watching. (I don't know what that's supposed to say...)
2. Hardly any gunfights and the small few are poorly played out as if your watching Little House On The Prairy. (There are a few. And I thought they were very well done. They were pretty bloody too, so I don't know what Little House On The Prairie episodes you've been watching...) 
3. Extremely boring, with no suspence,the main bad guy seems to be too nice and fake, real crappy acting. (There is suspense. And Chaney seemed like quite a nasty little dick to me... Brolin played it perfectly well.)
4. This movie should've been rated G and can easily be understood by 3 year olds. (It really shouldn't. There was blood, violence and a small amount of swearing. If you would take a 3 year old to this film, then you're the reason Americans can't stand the idea of a film just for adults.)

Judging by the high number of one star reviews, I fear that I may be back in the future.