THE Coen Brothers - director Joel, producer Ethan and both providing the script - have won many critical plaudits.
But perhaps they have also earned an arty, non-commercial image, which may be why The Man Who Wasn't There was not press shown locally.
For one thing, it is shot in black and white. The idea is to give the film a typical 1940s film noir feel and, as it is set in 1940, proves quite effective.
The story has small town barber Ed (Billy Bob Thornton in typical mean and moody mode) plotting to blackmail his wife's lover.
It all goes pear-shaped and eventually his wife Doris is arrested for murder.
The brothers do get a properly moody feel to the movie with spot-on costumes, props sets and setting.
And their less-than-glamorous cast - Thornton and Frances McDormand as his trampish wife Doris - give fine performances.
It's nicely plotted with each development coming as a surprise and the strange atmosphere present in a Coen Brothers film is always there. Okay, so it's a bit slow-moving at times but it provides good entertainment for those willing to go with the Coen flow.
