A History of Violence Review
by Jerry Saravia (faustus_08520 AT yahoo DOT com)October 19th, 2005
A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE (2005)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
Viewed on October 4th, 2005
RATING: 4 stars
In this jaded day and age, it is discomforting to know that audiences are not susceptible to morality plays about
violence. Nope, audiences want violence to be devoid of morality, to be placed in a cartoonish context where people
die and nobody gives a damn. That would be 2005's "Sin City,"
a relentless assault on the senses with gratuitous, sting-less violence. Leave it to David Cronenberg to helm a meditative, spellbindingly intense, slow-moving character study of violence in these trying times.
Viggo Mortensen is Tom Stall, a beloved figure in a small Indiana town. He runs a diner with two dutiful employees, and he's married to Edie (Maria Bello) and has two kids. It is the perfect idyllic existence, living a simple, placid life - you almost think that he was born and raised in this town. One night while closing up the diner, two strangers demand a cup of coffee from Tom. He refuses and a gunfight ensues that is about as abrupt and lightning-paced as you can imagine - you've seen this scene many times but not with such unbridled energy. Tom and his co-workers survive the ordeal, leaving the two strangers dead. He is hailed as a hero in town and in the media. This event catches the attention of Carl Fogaty (Ed Harris), a Philadelphia mobster who is convinced that Tom is Joey Cusack, a former killer. Tom tries to convince Carl and his henchmen that he is not Joey but they can't be fooled. Even Tom's wife begins to doubt her husband's innocence. After all, how can a diner owner defend himself with such skill when he's never handled a gun?
"A History of Violence" is not merely a mystery that is solved before the end credits - it is about the roots of violence and how it can affect a family. In this case, it is almost cyclical. Tom's bravery emits something rare in his son Jack (Ashton Holmes),
a high-school teenager who is frequently bullied in school. Jack never resorted to violence until one day, he punches and kicks two hateful bullies. Ironically, the bullies sue him for broken noses. Would Jack have ever reacted in such a way had it not been for his father's own actions?
Tom is not a superhero either or your typical Everyman. This media event has sparked something in him, perhaps a latent propensity for violence. He is consumed by this event, so much that it impairs his judgment, his concentration, his marriage, etc. Is Tom really Joey or are the mobsters confusing him for somebody that resembles Tom? Or maybe the mobsters consider
him prime material for a hired killer?
"A History of Violence" is unusual fare for director David Cronenberg, especially when he's normally concerned with
flesh and bodily fluids. Then I remembered that Cronenberg
has occasionally wandered from his primary obsessions with
"M. Butterfly" and "The Dead Zone." "A History of Violence" is remarkably restrained filmmaking with a beautifully modulated performance by Viggo Mortensen. It is this restraint that puts a hold on you and keeps you in suspense for most of the film. Once the mystery is solved of Tom's possible identity, you think the film is over. And then it ventures into an unforgettable climax that revolves around the most domestic of all settings: the family dinner table. I'll not say more than that but the film leaves you astonished and breathless.
Back to Mortensen, he gives the performance of his life. I first noticed Viggo Mortensen in 1991's "The Indian Runner" where he played a psychotic soldier who was prone to violence. Mortensen's Tom Stall is a fitting counterpart to the soldier he played in "Indian Runner," though more muted but never less than an emotional powerhouse. You want to believe Tom is an innocent man being tallied for crimes he may never have committed. And when the truth is discovered, you still believe in Tom as an Everyman who wants to reset his life in the state of normalcy he had. It is a stirring, provocative, humanistic, stirring performance.
Kudos must also go to Ed Harris as the most restrained of all mobsters I've seen on film, Maria Bello (a normally unimpressive actress) lending more insight than usual to the traditional wife role, William Hurt in a villainous role that has more bite than the villain he played in "Trial By Jury," and finally, Ashton Holmes as Jack, Tom's son, who questions his own strengths and weaknesses when it comes to using aggression.
"A History of Violence" is based on a graphic novel by John Wagner and Vince Locke, and the movie has comic-book-style violence only in the sense of how stylized it is. But we realize that is the point: to keep us on edge about Tom's identity. His idyllic existence has been threatened, and what would any normal man do to protect his family from the threat? How does one protect themselves and survive if not through violence or some form of aggression? Audiences may not be interested in the antihero but Cronenberg and Mortensen have brought him back with pungent style and dramatic weight. I will not easily forget Tom Stall and nor should you.
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