LSF Review: In The Valley of Elah
The best American film of 2007 thus far opened today and has inspired me to write a quick review in the hopes that people might see it when it opens near you. The film In The Valley of Elah deals with a recent story of a missing soldier just home from Iraq and what happens when his father searches for him. I saw the story on 60 Minutes (or one of the similar news shows) and while there is no ‘inspired by...’ tagline I recognized the incident and it played close to how I remembered it. That isn’t necessarily here nor there but it’s good to know in case it crosses your mind after seeing it.
Tommy Lee Jones gives a stellar performance, easily the best of his distinguished career as the father. Jones’ face looks ready to be added to Mount Rushmore and his work in this film is towering. The other main roles are played by Charlize Theron and Susan Sarandon, both wonderful as always. The writing and direction by Paul Haggis is flawless, you realize you are in steady hands very early on and there are no missteps here. Kudos to everyone, and there will be a plethora of awards for this great film.
I don’t want to give away plot or much more, but this film is a must-see and is easily the most important film this year, if there is a better one then I can’t wait to see it. I’m still reeling from the whole experience and was profoundly affected by this work of art. There have been many great documentaries about America and this heinous war but this is the first great narrative film. I encourage everyone to see it and bring along as many family members and friends to spread the word. This powerful film deserves the widest audience possible.
Thanks for the tip, looks like a very good movie. Excuse my excessive sentimentality, but I don’t know if I have the emotional fortitude to see it, being myself the father of a young man whom I love very much. One consolation for me is that my son is just beyond what was in the past the normal draft age. Still when I think of what a father must experience when a son is lost in such a tragic way, I can barely restrain my tears. I’ll wait till it appears on DVD and will feel more free to cry.
All this is too painful. In our kitchen we have a picture of a crying Iraqi girl which appeared in La Repubblica a few years ago. Every time I see it, I say to myself “Esto es dolor”.
Posted by on 09/14 at 07:12 PMoh CSTAR, I was openly weeping at the end. There’s nothing wrong with that and there was much sobbing in the theater. It’s cathartic to share that with people in a darkened theater, laughing and crying together brings a beautiful feeling of community.
The problem with waiting for a DVD, for me at least is that I’ve heard too much about it beforehand.
Posted by on 09/14 at 07:54 PMI agree, there’s nothing wrong with crying, or more particlarly with men crying. Still the experience is painful and it requires supportive companionship. My wife who would be my normal (supportive) companion for such a movie, is out of the country at the moment
One of the distressing aspects of the clearly discernible militaristic culture in our society (reflected in phrases used by dems and republicans alike referring to the virtues of the military) is the identification of masculinity with an unrelenting determination to use overwhelming force to solve problems. This unfortunately is the manhood advocated for our boys by Harvey Mansfield (what a man!) and William Kristol.
PS. There’s something screwy about the preview facility on your site. I’m using firefox running on Ubuntu Feisty.
Posted by on 09/14 at 08:55 PMthanks CSTAR. There’s a whole bunch of stuff that broke when we had to switch hosts, and I have no idea (kinda clueless about it, frankly) how to fix it.
Posted by on 09/14 at 09:43 PM
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