This is one of the most effective films I've seen. A small town, a simple world - a simple story for it, a study of violence - performances that hit you like blunt instruments. The heat is first, a lazy Summer day. The temperature is palpable. The violence doesn't wait. These characters are brutal and deep. The style is a contrast to the graphic novel it is based on. Quiet, simple, edgy realism. Not cartoonish at all.
Packed with harsh images. Young Jack Stall (Ashton Holmes) creates trouble for himself when he beats an overconfident jock in gym class baseball. He's clever but nervy, making jokes when the inevitable confrontation takes place in the boys' locker room.
We establish a loving, passionate relationship between Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) and his wife, Edie (Maria Bello.) And Tom is a quiet, strong and supportive father to his kids.
This family is about to get a violent shakeup. The dynamics will have to be re-established. The organised crime element, Carl Fogarty (Ed Harris) comes to town when a media story blows up, about the violence at the cafe, and Tom is hailed as a hero.
Carl thinks Tom Stall is this other guy Joey Cusack - and others begin to question it as well. Surely it's just a case of mistaken identity, but then again how is it that Tom is 'so good at killing people?'
An intense suspense drama which reveals secrets gradually - flipping the world of the characters upside down. A story about the argument between the violence and the family unit.
The haunting music and surgical cinematography draw out the violence in layers of beauty. Richie Cusack (William Hurt) is impressive, intimidating. The quiet tension is exhilirating. The terse performances are expertly delivered.
Some of the action is actually pretty disgusting. The ferocity of the no holds barred fighting with guns, wire, foot and fist. It gets bloody.
They think that they are going to live forever, right up until the moment when the bullet hits the flesh. And the life drains out.
Powerful ending, like the ending to a song. Profound in its volume of questions, giving no conclusive answers, but provoking thought. Sliced off clean, fade to black.
5 stars
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