A History of Violence (2005)
October 2nd, 2005 at 7:24 am (4 - Good)
A good example of a movie very well represented by it’s trailer is the new graphic novel adaptation A History of Violence (2005). If you see the trailer and find it interesting enough that you think it could hold your attention for two hours go see the movie, but be warned the violence is intense and bloody.
The story of the movie is pretty simple: Tom (Viggo Mortensen) foils the armed robbery of his small town diner and is made a local hero. Gangsters from Philadelphia see his picture on the news and come to the small town claiming he is an organized crime assassin living under an assumed name. When he refuses their claims the gangsters threaten his family in an effort to coerce him to… well it is not exactly clear what they want but in any case they are clearly ‘bad guys’ and are not shy to make demands. The rest of the movie deals with the uncertainty of Tom’s identity and the tension of brought about by the uncertainty of his identity and of his (and the gangster’s) intentions.
The story, however, is not the reason to watch A History of Violence. The movie should be watched and enjoyed for the subtlety and finesse of the acting and the direction. At one point in the movie where Tom is forced to defend himself and ably disarms a dangerous killer. In the moments immediately following the confrontation Mortensen’s face morphs into a disturbing mask of… is that satisfaction? worry? worry over the act of violence or the implications on his identity? The moment is superbly executed and disturbing and made me feel the price of admission had been more than returned.
The meaning of the title is never fully clear. Does it refer to the uncertain history of Tom? Is it the passive / violent tendencies that are reflected in his struggling teenaged son (Ashton Holmes)? Or maybe it is a reference to the disturbing history of screen horror perpetrated by director David Cronenberg (Videodrome (1983), Dead Ringers (1988), Naked Lunch (1991), Crash (1996)). Whatever the ‘real meaning’ might be, it is intriguing and beguiling enough to make A History of Violence well worth watching.