Synopsis:

Prophet of Destruction is an attempt to present an alternative take on what the Coen Brothers laid bare at the cinema. By moving the focus of the movie a little more in favour of Chigurh, the hope is that the movie becomes more about exploring this almost unstoppable force of nature than it is about Sheriff Tom Bell’s retirement and how uncomfortable he feels in this country which is no place for old men.

Intentions:

By no means is this intended as a “fix” or a “replacement” edit. I have too much respect for the Coen brothers to even suggest such a thing! After all, my goal here was not to overhaul the movie, more to pay tribute to it really. I do hope that Prophet represents a version which both they and perhaps the author Cormac McCarthey may have made had they decided to go down a slightly different path. So, grab your lucky quarter, close the curtains, turn out the lights as you discover the most unpredictable and dangerous hitman in history – Anton Chigurh: the prophet of destruction.

Change List:

- Opening narration from Sheriff, cut - Chigurh sequence when he’s caught by the police, taken to the station and then kills a deputy and escapes has now been removed from the beginning. - Chigurh masquerading as a policeman, pulling over and killing a driver, cut. - Film now starts with Moss shooting at the deer with new title credits and music by Carter Burwell - Removed short scene of Moss getting into his truck after taking the money - Chigurh’s first scene is now at the gas station and is placed before Moss evades the drug runners. Due to this, the shot of Moss seeing what turns out to be Chigurh’s car in the distance traveling to the gas station has now been replaced. - Sheriff saying goodbye to his wife, Loretta removed. - Sheriff and his deputy finding the burnt out car which Chigurh left now cut. The first time we see the Sheriff and the deputy is on horseback as they come towards discovering Moss’ truck. - Sheriff and deputy at Moss abandoned trailer, cut - Sheriff and deputy discussing “no exit wound” for the man killed by the highway, cut. - Removed Carson Well’s last line as he leaves the office having given his expert advice on Chigurh. One attempt at humor was enough ;) - cut the scene where the Sheriff follows and pulls over the truck driver for having his cargo unsecured - Carson Wells discovering where Moss hid the money, cut - Moss’ discussion with the border patrol officer removed - slight edit in the dialogue between Moss and his wife as he arranges the meet up at the Desert Sands hotel. She no longer mentions that she’s spoken to the Sheriff about her husband’s predicament. - Trimmed Chigurh’s walk through the corridor just before he enters the office of the man who hired him and shoots him dead. - Removed the scene of Sheriff Tom Bell and the local El Passo Sheriff having a coffee and chat about the state of the world. - Funeral scene trimmed to make it appear that Carla Jean may well be at Llewelyn’s funeral rather than her Mother’s. - Trimmed some of the dialogue between the Sheriff and Ellis, so that they discuss one story rather than two. - Entirely removed scene of Chigurh driving away after seeing Carla Jean and then his car being hit - Last scene between the Sheriff and Loretta, cut. - New ending created… and that’s all I’m saying.

Additional Notes:

No Country for Old Men is not a movie which really needs a fanedit – at least, for all its oscar wins and 5 star reviews, one would think that would be the case. However, despite some brilliant sequences involving the cat and mouse games between the hitman Anton Chigurh and his prey Llewlyn Moss, the monologues and voice-overs from Sheriff Tom Bell which hammer home the fact that literally, this is no longer a country for old men, seem to drag the movie out needlessly. This culminates in an ending which seems to split opinions everywhere you go.

Other Sources:

Special Thanks:

Special thanks to DwightFry for his invaluable feedback from the workprint and as always to my girlfriend Sophie Payne for her patience.