True Grit or why did it take me so long to see this film?

    Too often films are overhyped, we all know this problem.  Friends go on for years about how amazing The Kings Speech was or every other facebook post boasts the brilliance of Black Swan and when you finally get the chance to see the damn award winning film, after you muster the energy and the money and the time you arrive at the theatre hopes in hand only to think Oh.  Well quite the opposite in the case of True Grit at least for me.  I heard it was ok.  I heard it was boring (let me try to remember who said that and stop planning play dates with them) I heard many say average but it just goes to show you what allowing yourself your own experience with a film can do for your relationship with that piece of work.  This weekend I took my lazy ass to see True Grit (being that I'm in Brisbane, Australia and every movie playing here is about 2 months behind schedule) anyway I finally saw it.  YIPEETAYAYA.  And I aint kidding.  This was a damn good film.  First and foremost thank you Jeff Bridges (as Rooster Cogburn).  Thank you for sounding like you are chewing marbles.  Thank you for reminding me of my dad even when you are playing a cowboy 120 years ago.  Thank you for swallowing lines so that I cant hear you, yet I smile at what you just said as if it might be the most rousing piece of text yet to be heard.  Thank you for being Jeff Bridges and for making this film just a poofteenth short of being my favorite film of 2010 (Social Network baby!  Winner of this years best picture at the Oscars...oh wait no it wasn't...that's bullshit.)  Jeff Bridges saunters around True Grit like a man who's boots have fit since the day he put 'em on, while it takes the rest of us years to work 'em in.  It's as if Bridges was cowboy-booted as a baby.  And it wasn't just Bridges alone that charmed the pants off me, here comes Matt Damon playing a character role like a character!  I mean we could have brilliantly switched in Carol Brunette, his performance full of gestures and nuances each perfected by comic know how.  Matt Damon as La Bouef starts out in the film a cocky son of a bitch and ends up well a cocky son of a bitch but not without warmth, growth and the charisma cached away in his frown lines alone.  Thank goodness for the Coen Brothers and their magic.  Bringing us movies that are funny and full of characters we wish we knew. Hailee Steinfeld (Mattie Ross) is a boss, girl can act.  I'm not going to say too much about her, let's see how she does in the next film and hope that True Grit wasn't just beginners luck right out the gate.  Barry Pepper (Lucky Ned Pepper) as usual manages to make an lasting impression even with only about 5 lines as well as the always committed Josh Brolin in a grimy turn as the villain Tom Chaney.   True Grit is chock full of surprisingly complex characters who make you laugh and moments warm enough to make you cry.  The sprawling range of land they used for their cowboy trek was stunning and reminds us of life in the wild west, days and nights I'm happy I never had to face.  There was a certain acceleration in the plot that sorta snuck up on itself and I felt as if something was left out of the story which was my one complaint although this can be common to westerns and the only thing it did was leave me wanting more.  Although it may have taken me a long time to get around to seeing True Grit, it wont be long before I want to see it again.