SPECIAL: Coen Brothers Films, Ranked

This spring we felt like watching as many Coen Brothers films as we could in chronological order. I had already seen 11 of the 18, which actually surprised me. Four films didn't get viewed, sadly, due to not being able to easily watch (and we didn't want to pay a fee to rent). But I did watch four films for the first time. My favorite of the bunch is still O Brother Where Art Thou, simply because of the glorious combination of Homer's story, the 1930s time period, and the incredible music. All in all, it was a fun experience. Here's the complete list of all Coen Brothers feature films, followed by my rankings. We didn't watch the films highlighted in yellow.

• Blood Simple (1984)
• Raising Arizona (1987)
• Miller's Crossing (1990)
• Barton Fink (1991)--we weren't able to watch
• The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)
• Fargo (1996)
• The Big Lebowski (1998)
• O Brother Where Art Thou? (2000)
  
• The Man Who Wasn't There (2001)
• Intolerable Cruelty (2003)--we weren't able to watch
• The Ladykillers (2004)
• No Country for Old Men (2007)
• Burn After Reading (2008)
• A Serious Man (2009)--we weren't able to watch
• True Grit (2010)
• Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)
• Hail, Caesar! (2016)
• The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018)

#14 The Man Who Wasn't There (2001)

Rating: Q=5, P=4 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=2, Scale 3=2, Scale 4=2

#13 Blood Simple (1984)
Rating: Q=6, P=4 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=2, Scale 4=2

#12 Burn After Reading (2008)
Rating: Q=6, P=5 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=2

#11 Miller's Crossing (1991)

Rating: Q=6, P=5 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=2

#10 The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)

Rating: Q=6, P=5 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=2

#9 Raising Arizona (1987)

Rating: Q=6, P=5 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=2

#8 The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018)

Rating: Q=6, P=6 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=3

#7 Hail Caesar! (2016)
Rating: Q=6, P=6 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=3

#6 Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)
Rating: Q=6, P=6 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=3

#5 The Big Lebowski (1998)
Rating: Q=6, P=6 / Average OJ
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=3

#4 Fargo (1996)
Rating: Q=8, P=6 / Can't Get Enough
Scale 1=4, Scale 2=4, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=3

#3 True Grit (2010)
Rating: Q=6, P=7 / Comfy Old Standard
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=4, Scale 4=3

#2 No Country For Old Men (2007)
Rating: Q=7, P=7 / Can't Get Enough
Scale 1=3, Scale 2=4, Scale 3=4, Scale 4=3

#1 O Brother Where Art Thou? (2000)
Rating: Q=8, P=8 / Obsession
Scale 1=4, Scale 2=4, Scale 3=4, Scale 4=4

--Don't understand the ratings? Click here

Inside Llewyn Davis

Inside Llewyn Davis (Joel & Ethan Coen, 2013)

Click here for the basics

Rating: Q=7, P=7 / Obsession

Scale 1=4, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=4, Scale 4=3
 

Music, 1960s, Bleak, Philosophical, Folktale
 

My soul crumbled a little after watching the latest Coen Brothers film. Inside Llewyn Davis made me painfully aware of how undervalued the arts (and artists) are in our society--it is an age old story. Llewyn is a true artist--his heart full of passion and love for the music he plays. But he gets no money from his recordings or gigs. He has no bed to rest in, only other people's couches or floors. He doesn't even have a coat or boots to keep him warm in the bitter New York winter. Even when he journeys hundreds of miles and sings from the very depths of his soul, he is denied. Because, he is told...there isn't any money in his art. And he sees the acts, hears the silly songs, and learns about the deeds that do bring comfort and cash and it disgusts him. This is 1961. Sadly, little has changed.

Oscar Isaac amazed me (why have I never heard this guy until now?) in being the character I know so well. I think all true artists have a little bit of Llewyn inside, trying desperately to find a place that is not hostile or false feeling. And company that appreciates real talent...like I said, my soul crumbled a little.

--Don't understand the ratings? Click here