OVERLAY REPORT

In the film *No Country for Old Men* (2007), the primary conflict is a **deadly cat-and-mouse chase** over a briefcase containing **$2 million in cash**. This conflict primarily pits **Llewelyn Moss**, a Vietnam veteran and welder, against **Anton Chigurh**, a remorseless hitman hired to recover the money. A secondary, thematic conflict involves **Sheriff Ed Tom Bell**, who struggles to protect Moss and reconcile his own traditional morals with the senseless violence Chigurh represents. ### How the Conflict Started: The Inciting Incident The conflict began with a sequence of events in the West Texas desert in 1980: 1. **The Discovery:** While hunting pronghorn antelopes, Llewelyn Moss stumbles upon the "caldera"—the bloody aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong. He finds several trucks, numerous dead bodies, and a load of Mexican heroin. 2. **The Money:** Following a trail of blood, Moss finds a "last man standing" who died under a tree some distance away, clutching a briefcase. Moss opens it to find $2 million in cash. 3. **The Fateful Decision:** Moss takes the money and returns home to his wife, Carla Jean. However, his conscience is troubled by a wounded Mexican man he left behind at the scene who had begged him for water ("*Agua, por favor*"). ### The Specific Detail that Escalated the Conflict The conflict truly ignites not when Moss takes the money, but when he decides to **return to the scene** later that night to bring the dying man a jug of water. * **The Mistake:** While at the site, Moss is spotted by Mexican drug traffickers who have returned to the scene. * **The Consequence:** During the ensuing chase, Moss is forced to abandon his truck. Because his vehicle is registered in his name, the antagonists (and subsequently Anton Chigurh) are able to identify him and track him to his trailer home. * **The Tracker:** Unknown to Moss, the briefcase contains a hidden radio transponder. Anton Chigurh is given a receiver for this transponder, allowing him to relentlessly track Moss from hotel to hotel, turning a simple theft into a high-stakes hunt. ### Character Roles in the Conflict * **Llewelyn Moss:** Acts out of a mix of opportunism and a belief in his own survival skills. His tactical background as a veteran allows him to evade Chigurh longer than most, but his initial act of "mercy" (the water) is what ultimately dooms him. * **Anton Chigurh:** Represents an unstoppable force of nature or fate. He views his mission to recover the money as a moral or philosophical obligation, often using a coin toss to decide the lives of those he encounters. * **Sheriff Ed Tom Bell:** Represents the "Old Men" of the title. His conflict is internal; he is always one step behind the violence, realizing that the world has become too brutal and "senseless" for his brand of law enforcement.