ESSENCE OF HUMANITY: Hank and Joan Deerfield (Tommy Lee Jones and Susan Sarandon) deal with losing another son in the film In The Valley of Elah.Image: Warner Independent Pictures
Post-War Pains by Linh
Writer, producer and director Paul Haggis' latest film In The Valley of Elah is a mystery thriller and drama concerning a former military police investigator and war veteran, Hank Deerfield, who goes in search of his missing son, Mike, with the help of a reluctant civilian officer,Detective Emily Sanders, only to discover the horrifying truth surrounding his son's death.
In The Valley of Elah is inspired by a true story and addresses the human costs of war rather than the politics surrounding it. The title comes from the biblical story of David and Goliath where David slays Goliath in the Valley of Elah.
It's an allegory to Hank seeing himself as David who has to fight the might of the American military for the truth of his son's death and their determination to cover it up.
The ensemble cast is brilliant in handling the emotional content and ambiguous script to bring a film that goes to the heart of human conflict and tragedy with US soldiers returning from war.
Tommy Lee Jones gives an Oscar-calibre performance as Hank Deerfield who starts questioning his long held beliefs of the America he once supported, which now misuses and places its young soldiers in horrific situations, then help is not forthcoming when they return.
Jones' sincere and deeply reflective portrayal of Hank is superb and worthy of his Best Actor Oscar nomination for this film.
Charlize Theron plays Detective Emily Sanders who assists Hank Deerfield by investigating his son's disappearance. Theron does well in showing a tougher edge as the lone woman in a male dominated workplace and then a gentler side as the single mum to a young son.
Susan Sarandon has a small but pivotal role as Joan Deerfield, wife of Hank and mother of Mike, who excels as the griefstricken mother and long suffering wife of Hank in an already tense relationship.
Jonathan Tucker appears as Mike Deerfield, but only in photographs, in the grainy images recorded on his mobile phone and throughout Hank's flashbacks of his son. Tucker gives a powerful performance as the brave soldier who was serving his country, before returning to find he barely recognises himself as post-traumatic stress disorder sets in.
Cinematographer Roger Deakins' subtle lighting and excellent camerawork adds to the intrigue of Paul Haggis' script.
In The Valley of Elah is a moving and thought-provoking film that's heavy with symbolic gestures with a brutally honest depiction of the de-humanisation of soldiers fighting in a climate of fear and death, and the impact of their experiences psychologically and emotionally.
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