There has been a spate of socially conscious films focusing on the war in the Middle East and the current socio-political climate. Rendition, Stop Loss, Redacted, Lions For Lambs, and Home of the Brave, to name a few. The majority of these films have flopped financially from audiences already inundated with these issues on the news. They’ve flopped critically due to filmmakers shoving their own agendas down the throats of whoever was unfortunate enough to sit through the picture. 2009 saw a pair of relevant films that won critics over and were certainly deserving of wider release. I’m speaking of The Hurt Locker, which has made its way onto dozens of “Best Of” lists and a sure contender for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, and The Messenger.
Ben Foster stars as Staff Sgt. Will Montgomery who is sent home after being injured in Iraq. He returns not to a hero’s welcome, but to a sparsely decorated apartment, finding some catharsis listening to loud heavy metal music. His girlfriend, Kelly (Jena Malone), has moved on with her life and plans to wed another man.
With his tour of duty almost up, the Army assigns him to the Casualty Notification Team. Alongside Capt. Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson), a recovering alcoholic who narrowly missed seeing action in Desert Storm, SSgt. Montgomery has the unenviable task of informing family members that their loved one was killed in action. The Notification Team treats their duties the only way they can…with military precision. They are to get in and get out. They refer to the family only as NOKs (Next of Kin) and are not allowed to make physical contact at all. They follow a script that is specific in the language used. Soft terms like “passed away” or “no longer with us” are not to be spoken.
It is an emotionally draining job for SSgt. Montgomery still struggling with the traumatic experience that took him off the battlefield. The team’s heartbreaking news is met with inconsolable sadness or even blind rage. Montgomery and Stone are taken aback when the widowed Olivia Pitterson (Samantha Morton) reacts with surprising stoicism. She manages to hold it together and even shakes their hands, knowing the difficult position they are put in. SSgt. Montgomery disobeys orders and begins spending time with Olivia and her son.
Writer/director Oren Moverman previously co-wrote Todd Haynes’ Bob Dylan-inspired I’m Not There and once served in the Israeli army. The Messenger is his directorial debut and is an assured first effort that heralds the arrival of a filmmaker with plenty of potential. For the notification scenes, Moverman abstained from the rehearsal process and didn’t inform his leads who they would meet or how they would react. He allows the camera to observe unobtrusively. If there is camera movement during these sequences, it’s slight and almost documentary-like.
The acting is strong all around with Ben Foster bringing his usual intensity and Woody Harrelson deftly blending his flair for the comedic and the dramatic. Samantha Morton shines in her role as the newly widowed Olivia. It’s a subtle, low-key performance. She hits all the right notes without resorting to the melodramatic histrionics of the usual Oscar bait performance. Morton has proven to be one of the best actresses of the past decade her roles in Minority Report, In America, Control and even her cartoony portrayal of Mary, Queen of Scots in the bombastic Elizabeth: The Golden Age.
The Messenger isn’t concerned with pushing a pedantic, political agenda for the left or the right. The film is all about the human element which is why it succeeds.
Rating: ***
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