Emotion is a tricky devil in the world of film making. A film can shamelessly tug at heartstrings or gently reach the core or the human experience. Some films create an artful balance.
In Oren Moverman’s directorial debut, “The Messenger,” he crafts a story that never plays up the extreme emotions of the story the way a cheaper film would.
Ben Foster stars as Staff Sgt. Will Montgomery, a veteran who has recently returned from Iraq to find he has been assigned to casualty notification duty—his responsibility is to notify dead soldiers’ next of kin of their loss.
Woody Harrelson, in a powerhouse performance that has already garnered him several award nominations, plays Montgomery’s instructor and mentor Capt. Tony Stone.
Together, the two men move from one wrenching notification to the next, maintaining a stoicism mandated by their superiors. This movie could have easily been an overly-sentimental piece about what war does to those at home or a glorification of dying for your country.
The depth of the story becomes clear in the moments in between, where these soldiers are humanized. When they walk away from a crying mother or a father who has collapsed from the shock, you watch them deal with their own personal anguish.
For Montgomery, it’s the pain of dealing with an ex-girlfriend who couldn’t wait for him to come home, and for Stone it’s the struggle with sobriety after battling alcoholism.
Part of the film centers on Montgomery’s growing relationship with one of the widows he had to inform. A lesser film would mishandle this delicate relationship; Moverman is able to bring out the pathos of the situation.
“The Messenger” stands as a remarkable achievement among war films. Not only is it superbly acted and photographed, but it manages to communicate the realities and complexities of war without a single battle scene.
“The Messenger” is playing this week at Hippodrome State Theatre. For more information, visit thehipp.org.
