Viewed in
2008
Premise
After returning from his tour of duty in Iraq, an American soldier is mysteriously murdered. Facing uncooperative authorities, the soldier's father attempts to solve the case on his own.
Who should watch
Those who like emotional, well-written stories.
Thoughts
Paul Haggis delivers another heart-wrenching drama.
What was interesting about this story was that it was part mystery and part drama, as the father tries to solve his son's murder, but still dealing with the pain. Once again, Haggis created some wonderful human characters. The story was littered with shining minor characters, making the most of its two hour length.
Tommy Lee Jones and Charlize Theron led the way with their great acting. Susan Sarandon also had a small, but very emotional part as the murdered son's mother. Overall, the film will filled with excellent subtle acting. I felt compelled to watch it a second time just to catch things I missed.
I think some people assumed this was an anti-Iraqi War commentary movie and stayed away from it. While some characters shared anti-war sentiments, the war itself was more of just a setting. Also, the themes were universal that it could have taken place in any war period.
Hopefully people will ignore their assumptions and seek this film. Haggis delivered another well-crafted story with nice subtle acting.
What I would change
That party rap song in the last part of the credits seemed rather incongruous to the tone of the film.
