The Dude in Indian Territory

Mattie Ross: [watching Rooster load his revolver] Why do you keep that one chamber empty?
Rooster Cogburn: So I won't shoot my foot off.

As I surfed the web looking at Dennis Hopper's career, I discovered, much to my surprise, that the Coen Brothers are in the process of remaking True Grit. True Grit is one of my favorite movies: the counter play of John Wayne, the smiling Glen Campbell, and the gumption of Kim Darby's character teamed with Robert Duval as Ned Pepper, Dennis Hopper as Moon and Jeff Corey as Tom Chaney (all a string of superb villains) makes for a great two hours of cinema. While we think of Indian Territory, Oklahoma, as a Great Plains swath of Red Clay, the scenery of Fort Smith and Indian Territory reminds us that the Ozarks spill over form Missouri and Arkansas into Eastern Oklahoma.

The Coen Brother's Barton Fink, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Fargo and The Big Lebowski are modern masterworks, forgive me if I didn't pick your favorite film. In their reprise of True Grit, Jeff Bridges is cast as Rooster Cogburn, Matt Damon as the Texas Ranger LaBoeuf and Josh Brolin as Tom Chaney. Which reminds me, I need to see No Country for Old Men, and Josh did play the villain of Milk, Dan White.

We have already seen Jeff Bridges in one Post-Modern Western, Wild Bill. Lawman/Gunman/Hero/Heel? a la the Earps, Holliday and Masterson: depends on what point in what life one is judging? As with current Hollywood, the lens of popular culture, wishful thinking, dime novels and the legend of the West, all of our heroes either larger than life or smaller than legend. And, in another interesting side note, Jeff Corey, Tom Chaney in the original True Grit, played Wild Bill Hickok in Little Big Man.

I can only wait for this to hit the Screen!