There is no question that "No Country for Old Men" is a critical smash.  The result, has been a collective opinion that the film has a green light for a Best Picture nomination.  Some even think it's locked in the #1 slot.

To be sure, I've been skeptical since day one, but I won't emboss those thoughts here.  I will, however, point out that other awards analysts out there on the Oscarweb have expressed their own concerns at the film's chances, and not on the basis of quality, mind you, but on the basis of demographic appeal within the ranks of the Academy.

Well, the film screened at the Academy yesterday afternoon.  One individual, a guest at the well-attended screening, told me today that "people just got up shaking their heads" following the film's admittedly chilling ending.

The attendee said the screening was going well for the first hour or so, but that the final act induced a certain level of shock that did not read as the positive sort.  And, the attendee notes, there was very little applause over the film's credits.

There were also, apparently, walkouts.

Granted, this is just one perspective, and sometimes these things can be read in different lights.  Whatever the case, it appears the Academy was not climbing over themselves to anoint "No Country for Old Men" as their #1 film of 2007, or perhaps even one of their top five, as the critical community would seemingly have us believe.