It was a close call this week between Mel Gibson's psychologically tough new Boston crime drama, "Edge of Darkness," opening wide, and last year's critically acclaimed "The Messenger," finally opening at the Chelsea. But the ponderous weight of the critics won out in the end: my recommendation for the week goes to "The Messenger." Directed by the Israeli-American Oren Moverman, who also co-wrote the screenplay, "The Messenger" takes an uncompromising look at the jobs of soldiers in the Army's Casualty Notification Service. These men and women are responsible for going door to door and informing the families of fallen soldiers that their loved ones have been killed in action. Granted, any job is a good job in our current economy, and there's little risk of being killed yourself when serving in the CNS, but that's one job that I would never want to have.
Moverman was a co-writer for "I'm Not There," the 2007 anti-bio-pic of Bob Dylan, but "The Messenger" is his directing debut, so look for fresh,innovative approaches to the personal story of these soldiers and his take on the Iraq War. Woody Harrelson stars alongside Ben Foster as the two main CNS officers, and Harrelson has garnered much critical buzz for his performance (even earning a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor). Steve Buscemi also has a minor role, to throw something odd in the mix. On the tail end of our seven year involvement in Iraq, "The Messenger" should be a brutally honest movie, and therefore a very necessary movie, about what war means on the home front.
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