*Tommy Lee Jones and Charlize Theron team up for an unconventional war movie! Army vet Hank Deerfield (Jones) is investigating the death of his son (Jonathan Tucker), a soldier, at an army base in the U.S. Detective Emily Sanders (Theron) is the only one to take on his case, and together they tackle this mystery.
T.L. Jones shows why he deserved his Oscar for The Fugitive (1993), also nominated for this film. He actually acted out more dramatic scenes this time, even tearing up. It's an emotional movie. Charlize also deserved an Oscar nomination, allowing us to see more than just her exceptionally pretty face: single mom, harassed female worker, bloody nosed, hostess, police pursuer, fierce investigator, and frustrated yet compassionate bureaucrat.
The movie explores controversial issues with candid bluntness--many thought too intensely. What other way is there to cover war? Director, producer, and screenwriter Paul Haggis, also known for his Oscar winning screenwriting, maintained a raw, unfiltered perspective. Boob bars had well, boobs in your face, causing Mr. Deerfield to blush. On that same score, we witness Iraqi children being run over and left to die, U.S. infantrymen torturing Iraqi suspects, and major problems at army bases, like soldiers going AWOL. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), the film's theme, doesn't get enough coverage, as it took this long to enact the recent multi-billion 2018 VA law. Justice is rendered out with nobody really satisfied.
Despite giving us a better view than other flicks of the returning soldiers from the War in Iraq, this scrutiny didn't go far enough. We know about controversies like good cop vs. bad cop. PTSD was hardly mentioned, if at all, remaining such an untouchable subject. In the end, our soldiers handled it with what honor they could muster across generations. Tommy Lee Jones still made it work. He questioned everyone, even his own townsfolk, but never dissed the army, trying to make the best of a bad situation, yet wore the burden on his scraggly face.
There's a great moral in the title: war is hell, for even after David slew Goliath, he was persecuted by his own King Saul of Israel. For making my tear ducts open up too, having a son moving out into the brave new world, I move this up to 10th & Goal.
*Warner Independent Pictures. Movie GIF of raised upside down U.S. flag.
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