12 Movies Like No Country For Old Men To Watch Next

Based on the novel of the same name by Cormac McCarthy and helmed by Ethan and Joel Coen, the 2007 picture "No Country for Old Men" is a profound neo-Western drama that highlights the darkest parts of humanity. With a stellar cast that includes Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, and Tommy Lee Jones, the film ruminates on notions of fate, violence, and cause-and-effect. In many ways, it's the perfect mixture of strong source material, an inspired cast, and visionary directors who knew exactly the type of film they set out to make. It's no wonder that "No Country for Old Men" earned itself an Academy Award for Best Picture, and it's one of only four Westerns to do so.

If you enjoy the strange and violent melancholy of this Coen brothers feature — either because of the stark West Texas landscape, the undeniable performances, or McCarthy's signature literary bent — then we've got some good news for you. There are a dozen other motion pictures out there that we think fans of the Coens' existential fable might just as easily feast upon. While nothing quite compares to the near perfection that is "No Country," there are more than a few different tales that engage with similar narrative threads and themes that audiences should check out for themselves. Here are 12 movies like "No Country for Old Men" that you just have to see.

Perhaps the film most akin to "No Country for Old Men" is Tommy Lee Jones' "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada." Another neo-Western, this picture is primarily set in West Texas' Permian Basin in 2005 rather than the 1980s like the aforementioned "No Country." The film, often simply called "Three Burials," features a stellar performance by Jones (who also directs) only two years before he'd team up with the Coens. Here, he plays rancher Pete Perkins, whose Mexican friend, Melquiades Estrada (Julio Cedillo), is unexpectedly killed by Border Patrol agent Mike Norton (Barry Pepper). Hoping to make good on his promise to bury Melquiades in his Mexican hometown, Perkins kidnaps Norton and forces him to accompany Perkins and his friend's body into the southwestern desert.

Both "Three Burials" and "No Country" offer complex portrayals of the harsh West Texas landscape, and how the U.S.-Mexico border can quickly be turned into a battleground. "Three Burials" is a bit more Don Quixote-ish in its narrative structure, as Perkins and Norton travel throughout both Texas and our southern neighbor, encountering an eclectic cast of characters along the way. Just as in "No Country," the consequences of violence are fully on display here, as Norton is forced to endure both mental and physical anguish while Perkins seeks to see justice done for his friend.

Another Coen brothers joint, the 2010 remake of "True Grit" may be a bit different from the classic John Wayne version, but this edition runs closer to the original Charles Portis novel. Made only a few years after the Coens embarked on "No Country," this more traditional production features Jeff Bridges as Rooster Cogburn, introduces Hailee Steinfeld as Mattie Ross, and turns Matt Damon into a Texas Ranger named LaBeouf. It also reunites the Coens with Josh Brolin, who plays the murderous outlaw Tom Cheney, the object of the heroes' quest. With breathtaking visuals, a rousing score, and phenomenal performances, "True Grit" is a ride back to the Old West you won't easily forget.

Aside from the connections back to the Coens and Brolin, however, "True Grit" actually stands in contrast to "No Country for Old Men." Of course, both films deal masterfully in themes of retribution and the role of violence within Western society, but this more classical horse opera is a bit more satisfying in its conclusions. While the ending of "No Country for Old Men" leaves us with a somber reflection on the horrors of bloodshed, "True Grit" offers a picture of the American West that is long gone, one where good may still prevail in the end, even through imperfect means.

If you enjoy the thrilling aspects of "No Country for Old Men" that push the leading men into a death-dealing showdown full of brutal gunplay and killer suspense, then you will likely enjoy "Blue Ruin." Directed by Jeremy Saulnier, this 2013 revenge thriller follows vagabond Dwight Evans (Macon Blair) as he seeks revenge on the man he believe killed his parents decades earlier. The problem is, Dwight soon discovers that the man he thought responsible — who has just been released from prison — wasn't the killer after all. This sparks a series of fierce consequences as the family of the man he did kill showers their own brand of vengeance upon him in return.

In some respects, "Blue Ruin" feels a lot like a Coen brothers movie, and that's exactly why it makes it on this list. The picture — which was funded through a Kickstarter campaign — is pretty hard to watch at points, but that only echoes the ideas first displayed in "No Country." As a revenge film, "Blue Ruin" expertly engages with the senselessness of murder and notes that vengeance itself is a worthless endeavor that will only make things worse in the end.

Based on another Cormac McCarthy classic, it doesn't get much bleaker than the 2009 adaptation of "The Road," directed by John Hillcoat. This post-apocalyptic tale follows a father (Viggo Mortensen) and son (Kodi Smit-McPhee) as they aimlessly wander a broken world that has fallen into chaos after an unspecified cataclysmic event. With only a shopping cart full of their belongings and provisions, the clothes on their backs, and a gun with few bullets, they brave the horrors around them in the hope that they may only survive another day. While not a Western, or even a neo-Western, many of the same dark themes explored in previous McCarthy works are revisited here.

If you loved "No Country for Old Men," then "The Road" ought to be your next step into the author's exceptional catalog. It's valiant, cutthroat, and a harrowing portrayal of love in the midst of immense suffering and uncertainty. Somehow, the book is even more graphic than the film, which makes "The Road" — which Reddit called the "most realistic" post-apocalyptic movie — a bit easier to digest on the screen than it is to read. McCarthy himself praised the film to screenwriter Joe Penhall, who noted in The Guardian that the author called the picture "very powerful" and "like no other film [he had] seen." That's certainly high praise coming from one of the greatest American novelists of the last century.

While "No Country for Old Men" tackles the oilfields of West Texas, "There Will Be Blood" — loosely based on the novel "Oil!" by Upton Sinclair — travels further west to California at the height of the oil boom. With the gold rush long gone, the new type of precious metal is actually a black liquid that is far more dangerous. Daniel Day-Lewis plays oilman Daniel Plainview as he takes control of the growing petroleum industry in Little Boston, California, with no care for whoever stands in his way. Of course, the oil game is a vicious one, and ends more often than not with a trail of bodies all around. It's a grisly tale, one made great by the powerful, unmatched performances from Lewis and his co-star Paul Dano, who plays a charismatic preacher just as greedy as the oilman.

Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, "There Will Be Blood" echoes many of the same concepts of unchecked greed and aggression featured in "No Country," as well as its distinct relationship to the mythic American West. Make no mistake, both films — which hit theaters the very same year — suggest that it's greed that ultimately undoes a person, and that this particular sin is responsible for the deconstruction of the West as well. This is one period drama you won't easily forget; if you like it, here are 12 more movies like "There Will Be Blood."

Another Coen brothers production, "Blood Simple" is the duo's 1984 directorial debut and a neo-noir crime thriller that laid the foundation for projects like "No Country for Old Men." Essentially a steamy Southern Gothic, it's a bit more pulpy in style and substance than a film like "No Country." Set in a small Texas town, the plot hinges on misunderstandings following an affair, leading to a murderous conspiracy and plenty of lies and half-truths that keep the main cast in peril. 

M. Emmet Walsh plays a hard-boiled detective hired to take out the unmarried couple — the sensational Frances McDormand and always consistent John Getz — all under the orders of a local saloon owner (Dan Hedaya) who aims to take revenge on his unfaithful wife. While "No Country for Old Men" is the Coen brothers at the very top of their game, "Blood Simple" is a modest debut that shows their clear potential as filmmakers. Even before "Fargo," it was evident that Joel and Ethan Coen were destined for bigger things, and this 1984 thriller is a prime example of that.

The only feature on this list not set in North America, 2005's "The Proposition" is a Western set in Australia and helmed by "The Road" director John Hillcoat that fans of "No Country for Old Men" should dig. Centering on similar themes of western violence and the merciless conflict of the classical Old West frontier, the film follows outlaw Charlie Burns (Guy Pearce), who is given an impossible choice by local Captain Morris Stanley (Ray Winstone). If Charlie wants his younger brother (Richard Wilson) to live, then he must venture into the wilderness to kill his older brother (Danny Huston). In his efforts to save his younger sibling, Charlie wanders the Australian Outback pondering how he got himself in this mess, giving the audience plenty of time to wonder themselves.

With memorable performances from Pearce, Huston, and John Hurt in particular, "The Proposition" circles the notion that no matter the reasoning, continued violence ultimately ends in death. It's a harrowing conclusion to draw, but one that will feel familiar to anyone who loves "No Country." While the specifics of this tale are a bit different (setting the flick down under will do that), all the usual horse opera trappings are here.

If the plains of West Texas are more your speed, then 2016's "Hell or High Water" is a must-see neo-Western that just can't be beat. Written by future "Yellowstone" creator Taylor Sheridan and directed by David Mackenzie, the film follows two brothers, Tanner (Ben Foster) and Toby Howard (Chris Pine), as they come up with a plan to save their family's failing ranch property by robbing a series of Texas Midland Banks. Hot on their trail are a pair of Texas Rangers, played by Jeff Bridges and Gil Birmingham, who seem to always arrive just a bit too late. As profound a modern Western as any, "Hell or High Water" challenges everything you thought you knew about why the Howards have resorted to a life of crime, with a powerful ending that pits Pine's character against Bridges' in one of the best standoffs in recent Western history.

Just as "No Country for Old Men" echoed themes first explored in Cormac McCarthy's famous "border trilogy," "Hell or High Water" is the second part in Taylor Sheridan's American Frontier trilogy, which examines the pitfalls of the 21st century American West. This film in particular highlights the role that poverty plays in modern-day West Texas, and how it can drive folks to do all sorts of strange and desperate things. If that doesn't sound like Josh Brolin's "No Country" character, then we don't know what does.

If what you liked most about "No Country for Old Men" was the cat-and-mouse between Josh Brolin's Llewelyn Moss and Javier Bardem's Anton Chigurh, then "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" could be the perfect Western for you. With a title even lengthier than that of "No Country," "Jesse James" is an epic horse opera that runs nearly three hours, though you wouldn't know it. With stellar performances from Brad Pitt, who plays Jesse James, and Casey Affleck, the man behind Robert "Bob" Ford, the film starts with the pair as allies before a rift is formed between them. It isn't long before the whole thing collapses in on the outlaws and a dangerous game ensues.

Also released in 2007, "Jesse James" was called "the second masterpiece of the season" by film critic Emanuel Levy, bested in his view only by "No Country for Old Men" itself. Evidently, 2007 was the year for impressive examinations of the American West. A revisionist take on the genre, "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" is both historically accurate and deeply engaging, a sure-fire winner for folks who love the Westerns put out by the Coen brothers.

In 2005, the same year "The Proposition" was released, "A History of Violence" hit theaters. While "No Country for Old Men" partially centers itself on Javier Bardem's eerie hitman Chigurh, this David Cronenberg picture — based on a Vertigo Comics graphic novel of the same name — likewise follows a hitman, though one who has left that life behind. Like the gunslingers of the Old West, Viggo Mortensen's Tom Stall was an expert killer, but has since become a family man who puts down his weapons to find a simpler, more peaceful life. Unfortunately, Tom's past comes back to haunt him, and when it does, his sins are brought to light.

A straightforward action thriller, "A History of Violence" lives up to its name. Moreover, it plays as an interesting contrast to the assassin presented in "No Country." Tom isn't as deranged or menacing as Chigurh, but he's certainly just as deadly. While many of the films on this list wrestle with themes of escaping one's past and the nature of human violence, perhaps no entry does so with more clarity and precision than "A History of Violence."

Throughout film history, Westerns and standard superhero fare have rarely crossed over on the big screen, but one profound example of the way this combination can work wonders is 2017's "Logan." Directed by James Mangold, who had previously helmed 2007's "3:10 to Yuma" remake, this superhero blockbuster rounds out Hugh Jackman's solo Wolverine trilogy of films with a story that feels ripped right from a Clint Eastwood Western. Years after giving up the fight as Wolverine, Logan has run off to Mexico to take care of a declining Professor Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart). But when he's confronted by his long-lost daughter, Laura (Dafne Keen), he travels with her to find a mutant safe haven in Canada.

Why would "No Country for Old Men" viewers enjoy this particular "X-Men" installment? Well, aside from the familiar landscapes and Western plot (the 1953 classic "Shane" is a major part of this story), "Logan" offers many of the same meditations on a life full of bloodshed and solitude that we see in "No Country." While Logan at first takes Laura only for the money, he soon becomes willing to lay it all on the line for this young girl. As a result, the ending of "Logan" is simply beautiful. Although perhaps not as bleak as a film like "No Country for Old Men," the two share plenty of common ground.

Based on the iconic novel by Larry McMurtry, "Lonesome Dove" is admittedly not a movie. The 1989 miniseries stars Robert Duvall as former Texas Ranger Augustus "Gus" McCrae and Tommy Lee Jones as Captain Woodrow Call, as the pair lead a cattle drive from their small town on the Texas-Mexico border to the Montana Territory up north. Long before Jones was ever associated with the neo-Westerns of the 21st century, he made genre history playing Captain Call, and there's no better duo than these two to follow over the course of an epic four-part event. It's also easily one of the greatest projects that Robert Duvall has ever starred in.

If "No Country for Old Men" has gotten you in the mood for a more traditional Western adventure, then "Lonesome Dove" should probably be your next binge. Although the series aired on CBS nearly four decades ago, it remains one of the most acclaimed productions of its kind. The whole thing revolves around the titular Texas town, and the leading men's relationship to the dry, desert heat. If you haven't had the chance to catch this miniseries yet, let this be your sign to track it down.