I meant to post this the other day but the below news was way more exciting. Anyhow, Empire magazine polled it’s readership during November and December of last year as to which were the 201 (it was issue 201 of the magazine) Greatest Movies Of All Time. Well I’m sure it’ll come as no surprise that the Coen brothers had a couple of entries there. Coming in at number 120 was Fargo and at the dizzying, nosebleed-inducing height of number 25 was, of course, The Big Lebowksi. The top five reads thus; #5- The Godfather, #4- Star Wars, #3- The Fellowship Of The Ring, #2- The Empire Strikes Back and #1- The Shawshank Redemption. Oh, and the original The Ladykillers came in at #183 which is nice.

The Coen news wire is positively alight! Over at AICN they’ve got a brief interview with George Clooney where he mentions the fact that he’s making a movie entitled BURN AFTER READING with the Coens in Spring!!! Now I don’t know if this is a new title for Suburbicon or what but if it isn’t that makes THREE projects the Coens and Clooney are collaborating on simultaneously. It could also be that Clooney is having us on- he is famed for his practical jokes after all. If this is true and it is shooting in Spring what effect does it have on No Country For Old Men which did look like it was shaping up to be the next Coen movie. Who knows?!??! More when I have it. Thanks to Finishdish for the link – Ain’t It Cool

The same casting news is also reported over at Guardian Film but they also state the size of the budget, which is a handsome $30m.

Like buses you wait ages and then two come along at once! News gathers apace on No Country For Old Men, more from Empire Online… We reported yesterday that the Coen Brothers No Country For Old Men was due to go into production in May. Today comes the news that Javier Bardem and Tommy Lee Jones are in talks to lead the cast. The story of a young man who takes a fortune in cash from a dead body he finds near the Rio Grande, only to find himself at risk from drug dealers and hit men. We’re guessing that Bardem and Jones are down to play the bad guy and local sheriff respectively, but we’ll keep you up to date as we learn more. Bardem is predominantly known for his excellent dramatic work in Before Night Falls and The Sea Inside, but he had some comedy roles earlier in his career, so the Coens could really bring out his lighter side. Recently the Coens have been skewing a little too close to mainstream – not that popularity and quality are mutually exclusive but bigger budgets seem to have diluted the creativity they had when they were working with a 48p and as much John Turturro as they could carry. Here’s hoping this sees them back on form.

Finally some concrete news about the Coen’s next movie. Looks like it is going to be No Country For Old Men. This from Empire Online… Joel and Ethan Coen are set to make No Country For Old Men, based on the novel by Cormac “All The Pretty Horses” McCarthy. The story is set in Texas, where Llewellyn Moss, a young farmhand hunting antelope near the Rio Grande, stumbles across some dead bodies, a stash of heroin and a suitcase full of money. He takes the money and runs. But after two more men are murdered, the local sheriff gets involved and an ex-Special Forces hitman is called in to retrieve the money, things get dangerous for young Moss. The Coens have adapted the script from McCarthy’s novel. Scott Rudin is producing the film, and it is due to start shooting in Texas and New Mexico in May.