MovieChat Forums > No Country for Old Men (2007) Discussion > The girl at the pool and the shootout

The girl at the pool and the shootout

posted 2 years ago by PittPanthers47 (237)
23 replies | jump to latest

SPOILERS AHEAD. Just wondering to get some input from the more serious students of this fine film----was the girl at the pool working for the Mexicans who were after the money that Moss had and trying to lure him into the hotel room with the offer of beer? Or was she just simply what she seemed, merely some lonely gal getting a tan and offering a social invite to the handsome and rugged Moss?

Also, how do you think the shootout went down? I assume that Chigurh was nowhere near there and it was only the Mexicans targeting Moss. We see the girl dead in the pool, likely caught in the crossfire I would assume. We see Moss dead in a hotel room and a badly wounded Mexican crawling away. We see a number of Mexicans fleeing the scene amid many gunshots as Tommy Lee Jones arrives. Does anyone have a flowing idea at how it all went down and played out?

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[–] Nanook (1960) 2 years ago

Pretty sure she was just a bystander, as the cartel only had Llewelyn’s location not his description.

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[–] PittPanthers47 (237) 2 years ago

Thanks for the reply. Yeah, that is absolutely what I always figured that she was just a mere bystander who just happened to be in a terrible place at the wrong time. I just had the thought the other day that maybe she was in on it.

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[–] Nanook (1960) 2 years ago

NP. It’s a film that stayed with me long after I saw it in the theater. My favorite Coen bros. film (no mean feat), and one of my favorite book to screen adaptations.

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[–] PittPanthers47 (237) 2 years ago

just curious, does the book give a lot of good insights to questions like this or the jumble of other questions about this film? I like the way that the Coen brothers left so much to the viewer's imagination. A lot was left so open-ended. Like why did Chigurh do all the things he did and some of the things he did not do.

Is the book worth reading? Or was it just more a magical screen adaption like what Jaws was?

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[–] Nanook (1960) 2 years ago

The book is *absolutely* worth reading. In no small part due to McCarthy’s sparse and spartan prose. I frankly don’t recall this particular question being answered as it is a quintessential anticlimactic moment, but it certainly gives more insight in to the motivations of one of fiction’s most terrifying bad guys, a man of absolute and singular principle. A true force of nature.

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[–] PittPanthers47 (237) 2 years ago

Thanks. I would like to read the book. Good way to describe Chigurh. Yeah, he gave everyone the creeps. He and his logic seemed to contradict himself at times. Like why did he needlessly escalate things with the guy in the gas station. He could have said no rain and the guy would never remember him from the other hundreds of people who came through each week. But he ensured that the guy would remember him. Odd.

Why did he back down from the fat lady at the trailer park office so easily? Why did he not just try to charm her and explain he was old army buddies with Moss or something and he was just passing by and only had an hour or two to see him to learn about where he worked?

Why did he waste time and ammo to shoot at the bird on the bridge? Why did he not kill the two boys who saw him get hurt? Maybe he thought it better to bribe them in his injured state. But they could easily id him to the presumed murder of Carla.

Did he kill the nice old man with the chicken truck. Likely. Did he kill the accountant in the office? Who knows what the hell he would do. Why did he kill the two managers at the drug shootout?

Why did he not take Carson up on the offer to give him the money and be done with the hunt for it? Nothing he did made a lot of sense to me, but I guess to him it did.

You certainly don't have to try to answer all those questions. I was just putting them out there to just wonder about how he operated. Strange man!

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[–] Nanook (1960) 2 years ago

Heh. I won’t answer your questions to give you more motive to read the book, also because my memory of it isn’t as crystal as I’d like. Suffice it to say that in no uncertain terms does it provide very satisfying depth to Chigurgh’s character.

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[–] [deleted] 2 years ago

I read the book after I watched the movie and I did not think much of the book. I am considered of low intelligence so my view of the book is not considered dignified. The movie is much better than the book. The book does not give any insights into any of the characters. The book only gives the 'Moss talking to himself' view that the movie does.

The book is alright to read but it is not even close to life changing. If you are an ethnic celtic person McCarthy's books may appeal to you more than a non-celtic person.

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[–] PittPanthers47 (237) 2 years ago

Thanks, Dirk. I have heard similar takes on the book. And who says that you are of low-intelligence? Probably a lot of stupid azz people said that. You sound like a bright guy. Head up!

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[–] GreenGoblinsOck8 (7734) 2 years ago

I watched a youtube review of the book and don't think it'd be of my taste either. Because the reviewer said the author used almost no quotation marks through out the book and not only that but also put too much space between sentences. Those things would take away my enjoyment of it.

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[–] PittPanthers47 (237) 2 years ago

Thank you, Green Goblin. i guess I would like to give it a look to be honest. But I just don't seem to have any time to read anymore. If I am not busy then I am too tired to do it to the point that I could focus in on it. I know a lot of people did not care for it nearly as much as the film.

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[–] pazuzu9 (384) 2 years ago

The book is very much worth reading. McCarthy is a great writer. It's true, he doesn't use much punctuation but you get used to it. I too saw the movie before reading it and like others, think the movie is better but the book is still excellent.

Another great book by McCarthy is The Road. Also made into a movie. In that case, I think the book is way better.

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[–] PittPanthers47 (237) 2 years ago

Thank you, Pazuzu! I need to get it on my reading list here.

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[–] pacersoldaway (48) 2 years ago

In the book the girl is much younger and Carla Jean is left pondering whether Llewelyn cheated on her with the girl, though she states that she doesn't care if he did. This all after his death, of course.

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[–] PittPanthers47 (237) 2 years ago

In the film it looked like Moss had no interest whatsoever of being with the girl by the pool. Certainly he was on high alert for the danger he knew that was coming his way but he did show tinges of nobility that he was a good man at times in the movie. He went back to help the wounded Mexican get water, showed concern for Carla's well being and nixed the overtures of the pool girl.

The gun battle with the Mexicans must have started right as they ended the scene with Moss by the pool. The girl must have got hit in the crossfire as we see her floating face down when Bell gets there.

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[–] Druff (1802) 2 years ago

The girl is one of the few major differences between the book and movie. In the book, the girl is a teenage hitchhiker Moss picks up and they spend a bit of time together, stopping for meals and to stay in a motel. They bond and he gives her $1000 from the drug money. She assumes he's going to want her to "earn it" and is a tad offended when he doesn't. She asks him if he's "queer" and he playfully says yes. The chapter ends on a nice upbeat note, but then the next chapter kicks off with Bell arriving at a motel murder scene where a witness recounts how Mexican drug dealers suddenly appeared and confronted Moss, took the girl hostage to force him to drop his gun, then shot both the girl and Moss, though he managed to retrieve his gun and kill one of the Mexicans before he died.

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[–] PittPanthers47 (237) 2 years ago

That was very informative! Thank you very much for that. I have to wonder how it played out in the film version. I assume the girl must have got hit in the crossfire when the Mexicans opened up on Moss. But he was found in his room and away from her spot near the pool. I have a hard time picturing how it all went down in the film.

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[–] JFZ (1459) a year ago

That makes a lot more sense than what happened in the movie. A group of Mexicans who had no idea what their target looked like, would not go in guns blazing, and get the drop on someone who is looking out for them, and even after killing him, DO NOT EVEN TAKE THE FUCKING MONEY. It's all so stupid.

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[–] BKB (10100) a year ago

Moss just happened to be at the wrong place, at the wrong time. Plus, once he figured out there was a tracking device in that black case he was carrying with all that $$$$$, once he ditched that?? Then how did Chigurh managed to still track him?? It almost bordered on him being supernatural of sorts with instinct like that??

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[–] PittPanthers47 (237) a year ago

I think it was more a case that Moss was actively being hunted not only by Chigurh (and formerly Wells) but also by the Mexican cartel. They obtained his location by the one Mexican politely bantering with Moss' mother in law. Moss was on guard by the pool but instead of Chigurh showing up it was numerous well-armed Mexicans that came to the hotel.

I do concur that Chigurh's hunting skills were other-worldly. He was just plain good at what he did.

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[–] redban (6318) a year ago

There was that scene where Wells said "it only took me 3 hours" to find Moss in the Mexican hospital. Carson Wells and Chigurh and hired guns. They just know to do detective work

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[–] contreras (470) a year ago

I think the girl at the pool represents Llewelyn lowering his guard which led to his demise as he was already in a delicate position against a super resourceful and informed Chigurh.

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[–] redban (6318) a year ago

How the shootout went down is speculation. The filmmakers had Moss die off-screen to (likely) signify that the movie isn't really about him, the money, and the cat-and-mouse chase: the movie is more about Tommy Lee Jones' character

We can speculate that Moss got some shots in, as we see one Mexican crawling out of the room. But otherwise, we don't know what happened

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