A History Of Violence

Rating: B+

Strange things are going on in Aragon's life in A History Of Violence, a movie many critics are picking as one of the best movies of 2005. Viggo Mortensen plays Tom Stall, small town family man. He runs a diner, placates his daughter's fears of monsters in her closet, tries to give advice to his son, and makes out with his wife, Edie (Maria Bello). Things are pretty much normal in Tom's life until one night when two toughs try to rob his diner and harm his customers. Tom goes nuts and dispatches both of them with relative ease, making him a hero.

All the media attention brings many changes to Tom's life, the most disturbing is the appearance of three mysterious men in a Chrysler 300 at the diner who think that Tom is someone called Joey. A severely scarred Carl Fogarty, (Ed Harris - he's never looked better) is the leader of these man and bound and determined that Tom is who he says he is. The question is, does Tom hold a secret past or is all this just a case of mistaken identity?

From here, the movie takes many twists and turns, but the outcome is somewhat predictable. It is a very graphic movie, both violently and sexually. There is a ton of blood and goo and a good bit of nudity. These are all good things.

Mortensen delievers a wonderful performance as the tortured Tom Stall, trying to protect his family and trying to figure out what the heck is going on. Bello is fine as the confused wife looking at her husband in a different light. Harris is great as the mobster out for revenge, even if he has the wrong man. Also, William Hurt is the best he has been in years.

A very enjoyable movie, even if it's not as twisty and convoluted as I had hoped it would be. It's worth checking out.