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Joel and Ethan Coen are American filmmakers known for their dark humor, unique storylines, and homages to other directors. They grew up in Minnesota and started making films with a Super 8 camera. Their first film, Blood Simple, won awards, and they gained mainstream popularity with Raising Arizona. They continued to make films in various genres, including Fargo and The Big Lebowski, and won several Academy Awards for No Country for Old Men.
The Coen brothers, Joel and Ethan Coen, are two award-winning American filmmakers who have written, produced and directed a number of acclaimed films. Joel, born in 1954, is credited with writing and directing their films, and Ethan, born in 1957, is credited with writing and producing them. Both Coen brothers shared all of these responsibilities, however, when creating their various films. These films use a wide range of genres and are known for their dark humor, unique storylines, quirky characters, and homages to other famous films and directors.
The Coen brothers grew up in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. There, they used the income from mowing lawns to buy a Super 8 camera, which they used to remake movies they watched on television. Both are graduates of Simon’s Rock College in Bard, Massachusetts, and Joel spent four years as an undergraduate in the film program at NYU. In 1984, Joel and Ethan Coen wrote and directed Blood Simple, their first film together, which used a unique blend of plot, twists, atmosphere, and a dark sense of humor. The film was praised by critics and won both Sundance and Independent Spirit Awards.
The Coen brothers continued to collaborate on several projects which resulted in 1987’s Raising Arizona, the first film that brought them mainstream popularity. The film is a comedy about an infertile couple who kidnap a quintuple from a wealthy tycoon, and uses lighter comedy to shade the underlying darker themes implicated in the plot. From there, Joel and Ethan wrote, directed and produced many films that differed greatly from theme to theme. These included: the dark mob film, Miller’s Crossing; the story of 1940s B-movie writer Barton Fink; and Fargo, another dark story, this one of a desperate salesman and his plot to extort money by kidnapping his wife.
Fargo went on to win several more awards, including two Academy Awards, and then the Coen brothers took another completely different turn with their next film, The Big Lebowski. This mystery film with no shortage of eccentric characters, centered on a slacker called “The Dude” and was not a critical or commercial success when it was released, but has become one of the most cult classics appreciated of all time. The Coen brothers followed it up with many films that won them even more fans, awards and critical praise. Notable among these were O brother, where art thou? and No Country for Old Men. The latter won four Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor.
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