Josh Brolin Reveals No Country for Old Men Was One of the Greatest Experiences of His Life

Criterion Closet visits are always a good hang, and every so often a guest will very conveniently pull one of their own movies off the shelf. Cheeky, sure, but the picks usually deserve it. Add Josh Brolin to that club: he dropped by the Closet, reached down to a lower shelf, and clocked the one title of his that has made it into the Collection so far — 'No Country for Old Men.'

Brolin on making 'No Country': fun, friendships, and a stunned silence

The video is a strong watch, but the best part is Brolin talking about the shoot. He says he actually has not revisited the movie in a while, but making it was 'one of the greatest experiences' of his life because, simply, they had fun. He even jokes he is not sure Javier Bardem had fun, but he made him have fun. The project also kickstarted his friendships with both Joel and Ethan Coen.

What is charmingly funny is that, at the time, they all thought they were making a little movie that a few people might see. Then Brolin saw it with his son Trevor — and neither of them spoke for 20 minutes afterward.

'You want to be slapped quiet. And that is what No Country for Old Men did for me as a film lover.'

That ending sticks with you

He is not alone. This is one of those films — and that ending especially — that forces you to sit with it. I remember leaving the theater in 2007 basically speechless but completely wired, with a lot to chew on and not much to say out loud.

Where the movie landed: awards and a little inside baseball

'No Country for Old Men' is regularly ranked among the best films of this century, and the hardware backs it up: four Oscars — Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor for Bardem, and Best Adapted Screenplay.

For the trivia-minded: the Coens became only the second directing duo to win Best Director (after Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins for 'West Side Story'). They are also the first siblings to win that directing prize together. People sometimes namecheck another famous sibling pair — Philip and Julius Epstein — but their win was for writing 'Casablanca,' not directing.

What else Brolin grabbed from the Closet

• 'Mikey and Nicky' (Peter Falk and John Cassavetes)
• Steven Soderbergh's 'Traffic' (which also features his father, James Brolin)
• David Lynch's 'Lost Highway'
• Alex Cox's 'Repo Man'
• Alex Cox's 'Sid & Nancy'
• Gus Van Sant's 'Drugstore Cowboy'

Bottom line: Brolin plugging his own movie might sound shameless, but in this case it is the right move. It is the only Brolin film on the Criterion spine, and the memories he shares explain exactly why the movie hits the way it does — it slaps you quiet.