Violence sucked...

I was told a long time ago to see "A History of Violence" along with watching a number of films I need to get off my sorry ass and watch. So you'll see more capsule reviews of more modern films interspersed with my normal collection of Public Domain dreck (with the occiasional diamond).

Here's what I didn't like about "Violence." First, we all have a past. We all have things in our past that we may, well, not want others to find out. So Tom Stall has a past. A past where he killed people.

Well, if you don't know the story - his past comes back to haunt him (in the guise of Ed Harris - with one eye).

The first issue I have with the film is this: Tom has a son. Step son? Not? I don't know. Well, he's picked on by the school bully. When Tom's son makes the final out in a game against that bully - it's the impetus for the bully to kick his ass. Well, the problem that I had, was that the bully is all over the son like: "Oh, so you had to be Mr. big shot and catch the ball!" Uh, the guy didn't do anything. I mean, the ball almost LITERALLY falls into his glove and he catches it. Now, MAYBE THAT'S THE POINT is that the boy DIDN'T do anything. But it sure would have been far more interesting and far better to have the son make SOME sort of effort to catch the ball.

After a botched robbery, Tom Stall shoots and kills the two robbers. He hits the first robber with a glass pitcher, causing him to drop his gun. Seeing the gun, Tom grabs the gun, shoots the other guy and then shoots the dropper in the head after he has stabbed him in the foot.

Soon after Ed Harris asks Tom's wife: "How did he get so good a killing?" Excuse me? The guy defended himself as I think I or anyone would have. He didn't do anything out of the realm of possibility (like you're going to see later). He didn't use a specific kung-fu neck-breaking move only used by trained Mafia Hit-Men.

And, finally, another reason why this movie sucked. After all the truth is coming out, the wife is all pissed at him and they get in a fight. Her smacking him, he choking her. As she tries to get away, he grabs her by the ankle and she kicks at him and she tries to get up the stairs - with him choking her some more. Then he forces himself on her but she's "willing" and they have some really hot and heavy sex on the stairs. Is it rape? Is it consenual? Is it disturbing? Oh, yeah, foreplay's great when you're choking your wife. Followed almost immediately by a completely un-neccessary full frontal nude shot of the wife.

Finally, in the climax, even though he's been out of the "business" for - at the very least - 17 years (that's if he got his wife pregnant on their wedding day - or before or...) - he's still able to go "Jackie Chan" on the guys sent to kill him. And hardly misses a beat.

Basically, a film that didn't add up to a hill of beans.