In the Valley of Elah

I hate it when important films are overlooked and this is an important film. Although it was marketed by Warner Independent, they must not have tried very hard, cuz I sure hadn't heard of it until Tommy Lee Jones was nominated for Best Actor. But I suppose in our current climate of "don't ask, don't tell" regarding the Iraq war and it's cost in human misery, this film, with it's implication of no unharmed soldiers returning, is ... inconvenient.

In the Valley of Elah is loosely based on the true story of Richard Davis, a GI who returned from Iraq only to be murdered by members of his own company. In the fictionalized account, Jones plays Hank Deerfield, a tough ex MP who goes looking when his boy turns up AWOL four days after returning from his tour. When the body turns up, Hank is desperate for answers and goes looking with the aid of a local detective (Charlize Theron) who just doesn't like the look of the whole thing. As this dedicated military man tries to piece together what happened only to find his son further and further implicated in less than honorable behavior, all that he holds sacred comes into question.

Tommy Lee Jones is always impeccable, especially when playing the "everyman," and the rest of the cast more than hold their own. What makes this movie important however, is the story. This war is different and the war wounds our young vets come home with, including Post Traumatic Stress, we will be living with for some time to come. Paul Haggis (Crash) wrote and directed this film to suggest we take a look. There's no official website for the film, but check out the Richard Davis story here.