Emilio Estevez picks his favourite Coen brothers movie: “Outrageous and wonderfully violent”
Most of us know Emilio Estevez from his devastating performance in The Breakfast Club, which is a staple in the John Hughes catalogue and a key part of the 1980s coming-of-age cinema. Estevez plays Andrew Clark, the jock within the group of misfits who confronts his relationship to popularity and conformity during his time in detention. He describes in one particularly moving monologue the violent incident that landed him in trouble and an act of complete unwarranted cruelty, executed for the sole reason of exerting his power.
However, alongside his role in The Breakfast Club, he also found success through performances in The Repo Man, The Outsiders, and the Stephen King-written and directed film, Maximum Overdrive, forming a sprawling and varied filmography. Other than his performances, he also has exquisite taste for the medium he’s devoted his professional life to, describing one film that he thinks is completely extraordinary.
The Coen brothers have one of the most eclectic and accomplished filmographies of any directing duo in Hollywood. Their slate of films vastly differs in tone as they leap from dark comedies to westerns and detective dramas.
From the ridiculous series of mishaps in Burn After Reading, to the laid-back humour of The Big Lebowski and the stylised appearance of The Tragedy of Macbeth, the directors have established a style that is under constant evolution, only staying the same in their trademark nihilism and cynical worldview.
This is something that Estevez highlighted when discussing their work, sharing his love for one film in particular. When asked about where to start with their filmography, the actor explained, “So I would say tuck into No Country for Old Men, because I think I’ve figured out the end of the movie and why. And I think if you can… Again, I don’t want to spoil it for anyone, but it’s… Talk about a journey. I dig the film. I love the way it’s shot. I think it’s for my money, it’s the best picture that the Coen brothers have made just in terms of where it takes you emotionally, and it’s just so outrageous and wonderfully violent in ways that you just don’t expect. And yeah, I think Josh is, again, he was an absolute revelation in that role. He’s a neighbour of mine and I see him frequently, and I just think that he’s just extraordinary in that film. But yeah, I dig that.”
No Country for Old Men is perhaps one of the few strokes of pure genius in their filmography, with the central performance from Javier Bardem and his chilling delivery of “What’s the most you’ve ever lost in a coin toss?” going down in history as one of the most unnerving villainous psychopaths of all time.
Additionally, the Coen brothers can be partly credited with bringing about Josh Brolin’s career renaissance. Brolin rose to fame as a teenager and made a comeback later on through roles in Sicario, True Grit, and, recently, Dune. The modern-day western is about as inventive as you can get, with the directors expanding their storytelling into a new realm and the film sneaking its way to the top of their personal leaderboard.
