No Country For Old Men

Noah Pines
Robbins
Film Amalysis
Due: 12/8/14

To Kill or Not To Kill

Almost immediately in the film, we see Chigurh (Bardem) take his first victim of the film, strangling the oblivious deputy that was watching him. We then see him pull someone over in his stolen cop car, and he uses an air gun to blow their brains out and steal their car. The third time is different though. He stops at a gas station and gets into an argument with the owner of the station. Chigurh bets the man's life on a flip of his coin.

The man guesses correctly and Chigurh leaves. This is the first time we DON'T see Chigurh kill the first person he sees. But why?

I believe that Chigurh only killed out of necessity; he wouldn't kill someone unless he had a reason to. He needed to break out of jail, he needed to steal the man's car, but he had no reason why he should kill the gas station owner (besides getting into a small argument with him). But that doesn't mean he's not crazy. He killed Carson Wells (Harrelson) simply because he felt that he didn't need him. Carson was sent to find the case full of money, which he did, but he was unable to retrieve it. Chigurh told him that he didn't need to know where it was at that moment, because he already knew where it will be later, set at his feet.

He then killed Carson, because he knew he would get it eventually.

Do you think Chigurh killed Carla Jean Moss? Why?