IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH

"My son has spent the last 18 months bringing democracy to a sh*thole!"

When retired military police sergeant Hank Deerfield (Jones) receives a phone call to say this son has been reported absent without leave after he returned from his tour in Iraq, he decides to head to his son's base to look for him. While investigating he discovers that neither the Army nor the local police force is taking it seriously but when a body is recovered and arguments over jurisdiction ensue, detective Emily Sanders (Theron) works with Hank to uncover the truth.

Movies based around the current American deployment to Iraq are ones to cause debate and reflection on the 'War on Terror' but can Oscar winning writer/director Paul Haggis raise an issue about the troops themselves?

Based around actual events that took place in 2004, Paul Haggis directorial follow up to his Oscar winning 'Crash' has just as much to say as his movie that took home the golden statue. With the current American and British occupation of Iraq causes not just conflict in the country itself but debate amongst both politicians and the general public alike, stories of how it is affecting the troops sent there should also be remembered as they are the ones having to 'bring democracy' to these war torn streets.

With the main emphasis of the story revolving around the father, Hank Deerfield, and the detective, Emily Sanders, investigation into the disappearance of Hank's son Mike, it is the underlying story of how soldiers in any conflict cope with what they have witnessed or had to do which what draws you into this movie. Paul Haggis and co-story writer Mike Boal successfully grab you from the off and pull you into a pot boiler of a story that simmers away until the final revelations make the story boil over. The investigational elements draw you in but it is the reasons and motivations for the events that make this movie truly compelling.

Tommy Lee Jones is an actor that commands your attention every time he graces the silver screen. As Hank Deerfield, he creates the character of a driven father who wants to know what happened to his son and he will not rest until the truth has been revealed. This is another powerhouse performance from the actor and one that forms the main backbone of the movie. After her Oscar winning performance in 'Monster', Charlize Theron has followed up this up with a series of interesting and varied roles to showcase that that performance wasn't just a one off and her role as detective Emily Sanders is another that will get her more plaudits. While she is undoubtedly an extremely beautiful woman, she is never afraid of taking on a more plain or professional looking demeanour to bring a character to life and Emily Sanders is a good challenge for the clearly talented actress. Paul Haggis has also drawn together a good supporting cast with noticeable, standout performances from young actors Wes Chatham, Jake McLaughlin, Mehcad Brooks and Jonathan Tucker, a good role for the talented Jason Patric and brief but noticeable appearances for James Franco, Josh Brolin and Susan Sarandon.

'In the Valley of Elah' is another well writer and extremely well acted 'statement' movie from Paul Haggis. He is a writer/director who has a talent to draw you into a story but enlighten you at the same time, getting you talking, discussing and reflecting on not only what you have seen but some biggest more poignant issues that everyone needs to think about. It made be a little slow paced and has a few predictable moments but this is a movie that needs to simmer away to allow the finale to have the impact that will have you thinking about the film for a long time after.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Widescreen 2.35:1 Anamorphic with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is good.

BONUS FEATURES

After Iraq (27.39 mins)
Writer/director Paul Haggis, military adviser Jim Dever and stars Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Wes Chatham, Victor Wolf, Sean Huze and Jonathan Tucker talk about the conflict in Iraq. Writer/director Paul Haggis talks about what the story was based on and the rest talk about their own connections to the war. With behind the scenes footage from the making of the movie, this is a good featurette.

Coming Home (15.23 mins)
Writer/director Paul Haggis and Sean Huze talk about what it is like for soldiers to return to society. They also talk about how many veterans suffer from post dramatic stress and the effects and what causes the symptoms.

Interview with Paul Haggis (15.53 mins)
The Oscar winning writer/director talks passionately about the movie and how difficult the film was to get made. Even though it was based on a real story, Haggis reveals how he had a hard time writing the script and getting finance. The reason behind the title is also revealed and how he saw tragedy while researching the script.

Additional Scenes (7.49 mins)
These are two additional scenes that cover a conversation between Hank Deerfield and his son's girlfriend. Unfortunately these scenes do not include a commentary or introduction to reveal why they were removed.

Trailer (2.04 mins)
Watch the trailer that previewed the movie in theatres and on the Internet.

Trailers
Previews of 'Brick Lane', 'The Nines' and 'Sicko'

OVERALL

The DVD treatment for 'In the Valley of Elah' is one that hands will enjoy. The featurettes cover all aspects of the film production and an insight into the Iraq conflict. The only real let down is the lack of a commentary track from Paul Haggis but this aside it is a good set of DVD extras.

DVD

Crash

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2008