Filmmakers who direct movies hand in hand are a rare phenomenon. Not because the seventh art is not collaborative, but because the single command is the most normal option in the industry. For this reason, the work of Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, Lana and Lilly Wachowski, Josh and Benny Safdie, Joe and Anthony Russo, Matt and Ross Duffer or Joel and Ethan Coen it is conspicuous.
The last two, specifically, are the best known among moviegoers around the world along with the Wachowskis, although the Russos have made two of the highest-grossing films in history, Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and end game (2019), and the Duffers are the creators of stranger things (since 2016). Also, none of the others have won Oscar awards and they, yes.
They haven’t even gotten any nominations. Although the Dardennes have been granted the Palme d’Or to two of his films at the Cannes Festival. Just like the Coen Brothers for Barton Finkwho have won statuettes from the Film Academy, as we said, for the script of Fargo and three others thanks to No country for old men: best film, direction and adapted screenplay.
The opinion of specialized critics on the work of the Coen Brothers
The numbers shown in the section of Rotten Tomatoes for the critics they are the following in terms of the Coen Brothers feature films, ordering them from best to worst:
- Fargo (1996): average grade of 8.8 out of 10 in 102 reviews.
- No country for old men (2007): mean of 8.7 in 287 reviews.
- About Llewyn Davis (2013): mean of 8.5 in 287 reviews.
- Value of law (2010): mean of 8.3 in 276 reviews.
- easy blood (1984): mean of 8.3 in 105 reviews.
- The tragedy of Macbeth (2021): average of 8.2 in 267 reviews.
- death among the flowers (1990): mean of 8.2 in 65 reviews.
- Barton Fink (1991): mean of 7.9 in 63 reviews.
- a serious guy (2009): mean of 7.9 in 227 reviews.
- The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018): mean of 7.8 in 235 reviews.
- arizona baby (1987): mean of 7.7 in 60 reviews.
- the big lebowski (1998): mean of 7.5 in 109 reviews.
- Hail Caesar! (2016): mean of 7.2 in 360 reviews.
- O Brother! (2000): mean of 7.2 in 153 reviews.
- The man who was never there (2001): mean of 7.1 in 160 reviews.
- burn after reading (2008): mean of 6.9 in 249 reviews.
- intolerable cruelty (2003): mean of 6.8 in 188 reviews.
- The big jump (1994): mean of 6.4 in 46 reviews.
- Ladykillers (2004): mean of 6.1 in 192 reviews.
Rotten Tomatoes moviegoers’ opinion
We go back to Rotten Tomatoesbut this time for the first ranking of the Coen Brothers films according to the votes of its users:
- the big lebowski: average mark of 4.5 out of 5 with more than 250,000 votes.
- Fargo: half of 4.3 with more than 100,000 votes.
- death among the flowers: half of 4.2 with more than 50,000 votes.
- No country for old men: half of 4.2 with more than 250,000 votes.
- Barton Fink: half of 4.1 with more than 25,000 votes.
- O Brother!: half of 4.1 with more than 250,000 votes.
- Value of law: half of 4.1 with more than 100,000 votes.
- easy blood: half of 4 with more than 25,000 votes.
- arizona baby: half of 4 with more than 50,000 votes.
- The man who was never there: half of 3.9 with more than 25,000 votes.
- The big jump: half of 3.9 with more than 25,000 votes.
- The Ballad of Buster Scruggs: half of 3.8 with more than 2,500 votes.
- The tragedy of Macbeth: half of 3.8 with more than 500 votes.
- About Llewyn Davis: half of 3.7 with more than 25,000 votes.
- a serious guy: half of 3.6 with more than 50,000 votes.
- burn after reading: half of 3.4 with more than 100,000 votes.
- intolerable cruelty: half of 3.2 with more than 50,000 votes.
- Ladykillers: half of 3 with more than 50,000 votes.
- Hail Caesar!: half of 2.9 with more than 25,000 votes.
The opinion of IMDb moviegoers on the Coen Brothers’ cinema
On the other hand, these are the data that you also provide us IMDb on public opinion:
- It is not a country for old men: average mark of 8.2 out of 10 with 933,526 votes.
- the big lebowski: half of 8.1 with 785,718 votes.
- Fargo: half of 8.1 with 659,934 votes.
- O Brother!: half of 7.7 with 304,396 votes.
- death among the flowers: half of 7.7 with 133,320 votes.
- Value of law: half of 7.6 with 332,001 votes.
- easy blood: half of 7.6 with 94,853 votes.
- Barton Fink: half of 7.6 with 119,350 votes.
- The man who was never there: half of 7.5 with 108,350 votes.
- About Llewyn Davis: half of 7.4 with 150,552 votes.
- The Ballad of Buster Scruggs: half of 7.3 with 140,439 votes.
- arizona baby: half of 7.3 with 135,865 votes.
- The big jump: half of 7.2 with 80,292 votes.
- The tragedy of Macbeth: half of 7.2 with 26,843 votes.
- burn after reading: half of 7 with 326,534 votes.
- a serious guy: half of 7 with 140,633 votes.
- Hail Caesar!: half of 6.3 with 131,930 votes.
- intolerable cruelty: half of 6.3 with 96,301 votes.
- Ladykillers: half of 6.2 with 103,666 votes.
FilmAffinity moviegoers’ opinion
And, to finish, here we have the information that it offers us FilmAffinity:
- death among the flowers: half of 7.8 with 58,239 votes.
- Fargo: half of 7.8 with 98,497 votes.
- the big lebowski: half of 7.6 with 118,197 votes.
- Barton Fink: half of 7.4 with 24,953 votes.
- The man who was never there: half of 7.3 with 29,810 votes.
- easy blood: half of 7.3 with 22,013 votes.
- No country for old men: half of 7.2 with 110,818 votes.
- Value of law: half of 7.1 with 55,043 votes.
- O Brother!: half of 6.8 with 35,814 votes.
- About Llewyn Davis: half of 6.7 with 25,222 votes.
- The tragedy of Macbeth: average mark of 6.6 out of 10 with 2,229 votes.
- The big jump: half of 6.6 with 12,144 votes.
- arizona baby: half of 6.6 with 19,263 votes.
- The Ballad of Buster Scruggs: half of 6.5 with 16,426 votes.
- burn after reading: half of 6.5 with 51,868 votes.
- a serious guy: half of 6.1 with 22,874 votes.
- Ladykillers: half of 6 with 22,764 votes.
- intolerable cruelty: half of 5.5 with 21,656 votes.
- Hail Caesar!: half of 5.4 with 17,116 votes.
Conclusions on the best and worst of the Coen Brothers
What we have here is a lack of absolute unanimity between professional critics and moviegoers who vote online. The first indicates howfor best film by the Coen Brothers to Fargo. Rotten Tomatoes users prefer the big lebowski; the ones on IMDb, pick No country for old men; and those of FilmAffinity, opt for death among the flowers.
However, for worst of these filmmakers the positions are closer to each other. Thus, if critics and IMDb moviegoers point to Ladykillersthose of Rotten Tomatoes and those of FilmAffinity choose, instead, Hail Caesar!