HEADS OR TAILS: NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN

I can't ever imagine there's an action figure for this villain but Anton Chigurh from No Country for Old Men is one of the scariest psychopaths ever to darken a screen.

I thought this when I first saw the compressed-air-tank-shooting nutcase years ago at the flicks when No Country was battling it out with There Will Be Blood for the most gritty film of 2007. No Country won hands down to the sound of a yale-door-keyhole popping out and hitting the wall.

I am a huge fan of Tommy Lee Jones and have seen most of his movies and especially enjoy his portrayal of the pained lawman in tales like The Fugitive and US Marshalls. He's even more pained and philosophical in No Country and the Coen Brothers make great use of his Southern drawl and dog-tired looks.

Philosophy is about all you can fight a crazed assassin like Anton Chigurh with. With his portable compressed air tank and massively silencered rifle, combined with the actor Javier Bardem's compelling Spanish accent and his frighteningly decisive stride, the assassin seared himself straight into our rattled brains. 

Yet more than his appalling armoury, for me it was the look they gave Chigurh that was so scary. He looked as pale as a corpse and his jet black haircut was straight out of the Middle Ages, making him look like a deranged pageboy who'd fallen into a bag of flour!

Of course the other actors getting out of his way did a sterling job too. Josh Brolin was mesmerizing as his hapless quarry and Woody Harrelson is excellent as the rival hitman.

The film's makers, the Coen Brothers, are favourites of mine. They did such a fabulous job bringing Cormac McCarthy's novel to life. I first came across the Coens decades ago with Blood Simple, an equally engrossing movie and one, which I'll be tracking down again very soon.

And like a true bad penny, Anton Chigurh really does turn up again as an action figure after all! In fact there are lots! Here's one from Dark Toys and like a twisted Captain Action he comes with lots of killer accessories!

What do you think readers?