So, bare bones. Tom Stall (Mortensen) is a family man, living in a small town in Indiana with his loving, playful wife, Edie (Maria Bello), their teenage son, Jack (Ashton Holmes) and small daughter, Sarah (Heidi Hayes). Tom runs a diner, Maria works in town, they’re a loving family. Sure, Jack’s got issues with a bully at his high school, and Sarah’s a little spoiled, but life is good. Until it’s not.
Two seriously bad guys roll into town; we know they’re bad because we saw what they did a few days earlier. They’re low on funds and decide to rob Tom’s diner. Should be easy pickings, just before closing time, only a few customers there. Except they didn’t figure on Tom, who in the blink of an eye turns from a quiet, taciturn, easy-going guy into someone who can kill two armed men without even thinking about it. Weird, but in a good way, because these were obviously bad men.
Tom’s a hero, and not just in his town, but nationally. And that brings other bad guys calling, guys who say his name is Joey Cusack, not Tom Stall. Their leader, Carl Fogarty (Ed Harris) is certain this is Joey, and he wants revenge for what Joey did to him back in Philadelphia. Joey needs to come back with him, to face up not just to Carl, but to Richie, Joey’s older brother.
Tom swears he’s not Joey. Is he? Even if he’s not, can he just keep on trying to ignore these people? And, if he is Joey, what does that mean for the family he’s built, and particularly his relationships with Edie and Jack?
As you can probably guess from the name, if not from it being a Cronenberg film, A History of Violence is very violent. But, it’s also achingly poignant, and raises some very big questions. How much does our future have to depend on our past? How much can the people who love us forgive? How much can we forgive in ourselves.
The story is helped by some outstanding performances, particularly from Mortensen, but also from Bello, Harris and Holmes. The film was Oscar-nominated for best adapted screenplay and best supporting actor (William Hurt, playing Richie Cusack). It received a number of other award nominations for Cronenberg, many of the cast members, and a raft of technical categories in national and international film festivals.
The violence looks realistic, and there’s a marvelous soundtrack by Howard Shore that really adds to the mood of uncertainty and suspense. The Blu-ray audio is Dolby TrueHD English 5.1. The film is in 1080p High Def; the special features are in 480i or 480p Standard Def. The film is subtitled in English and Spanish; there are no subtitles on the special feaures.
The Blu-ray includes one deleted scene, which is also the subject of a brief featurette. It’s a nightmare sequence with Harris and Mortensen, and the featurette explains how it was shot. There are also featurettes comparing how two violent scenes are different in the U.S. and International releases (again, very short) and tracking the cast and crew’s experiences at Cannes, where the film was first shown. The features also include an optional commentary track with Cronenberg and the original theatrical trailer. And, there’s a digital download of the film for your computer.
As is usually the case, there’s a scene selection option on the disc. I don’t usually pay a lot of attention to these, but the scene titles caught my eye, particularly the one-word title for the final scene. It’s called “Hope,” and that’s a profound summary.
