“A History of Violence” (New Line Cinema)
David Cronenberg made his directorial mark with such off beat films as “The Fly,” “Scanners” and “Dead Ringers.” These films were a bit bizarre and always psychologically and visually intense. They were also a step or two out of the mainstream of entertainment. Now he has made his most “mainstream” movie yet with “A History of Violence,” but the Cronenberg touch is still very much in evidence.
Viggo Mortensen plays Tom Stall, a man who lives in a small town in the Midwest. He is married with two children and is the owner/operator of a downtown caf. His life is calm and good until the day two thugs enter his establishment and try to hurt and rob some of his patrons.
Tom quickly dispenses them to violent deaths and saves the day. He is immediately proclaimed a local hero and his name is plastered on the news around the country. Tom is uncomfortable with this publicity and tries to avoid the limelight. His mild-mannered behavior is in keeping with his personality.
A few days later a man (Ed Harris) comes into his establishment and calls him “Joey.” He claims Joey is from Philadelphia and is a member of the mob. He will not take no for an answer and begins to stalk and terrorize Tom and his family.
The beauty of this film is in the edginess the script and performances create. The audience is not sure if Tom is telling the truth or if he is really a man with a past full of violence. Even Tom’s wife Edie (Maria Bello) begins to question him.
The movie is full of twists and turns, and surprises lurk in the unfolding of the script. Some you can almost predict while others you can’t. Some are believable and some are not.
The acting is first rate across the board. Mortensen makes the soft-spoken Tom totally credible as he asks to just be left alone. He is believable as a Clark Kent type of ordinary guy, but also convinces the audience that the physical reactions he makes are valid too.
Bello is just as good as Edie. She is a fiercely protective woman who wants her family to find its way back to a peaceful life. She also works well with Mortensen to create a portrait of a man and woman who are passionately in love.
Harris is calm and menacing in his role, while William Hurt makes a late entry into the film as a quirky character from Tom’s past. Ashton Holmes makes an impressive screen debut as the Stall’s son Jack. He is involved in a scene that is the most startling in the movie.
The film is rated R for profanity, nudity and violence.
“A History of Violence” is an intense film that showcases Cronenberg’s talent to shock and surprise. Its major strength is the talent of its actors and its major weakness is a less than satisfying ending. It provides Mortensen with a role that will make him a contender for leading man roles in the future, and it cements Bello’s standing as one of the country’s outstanding actresses.
If you like to be kept off balance by the movies you see, then “A History of Violence” should be right up your alley.
I scored “A History of Violence” an archived 7 out of 10.
