A History of Family

A History of Violence (2005)

I’ve been a fan of the work of David Cronenberg for many years now. I’ve watched his work mature from bloody b movies to obscure story and now to modern drama. A History of Violenceis a dark family drama based on the comic book of the same name, and Cronenberg surprised me with his work this time around.

The premise of the movie is a basic one, one mans past catches up with him, upsets his happy family small town life, and the family is forced to deal with the lies he has told over the years. Movies with basic stories are some of my favorite films, and this movie continues to add to that concept. If the story is basic, it is up to the director and the cast to draw your attention to the screen. Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, David Cronenberg, William Hurt, and Ed Harris are each enough to earn my interest mixing them together in a movie about what a family does to remain a family is a recipe for quality.

To call History of Violencea comic book movie, would be to confuse the movie with spandex and super powers. If this movie were made in the 1940’s it would have starred Paul Henreid, Humphrey Bogart, and Ingrid Bergman. Raymond Chandler could have written the script and he would have stood in line for days to experience the home spun look of the Indiana town upset by the gruesome killing of two strangers committed by one of it’s leading citizens. Cronenberg managed to work in a few shots throughout the movie where walls, doorways, and roads caused straight lines to appear and give the audience the illusion of the frames of a comic book panel.

Mortensen has been the heroic leading man many times, and he still leads this production but without the shine of heroism. His pickup truck needs work, his flannel shirts are faded, and his son needs guidance about growing up. He portrays a man who was once highly skilled and highly sought after in a very specialized industry. Who now seeks a life where serving a good cup of coffee, a nice slice of key lime pie, and a happy family are his only goals. And he will do what he has to continue with this life.

If there were something about this movie that stuck out in my mind as not belonging in the film, it would be Maria Bello. Her performance is as powerful as any other in this film, but her look struck me as overly polished. How many small town Indiana mothers of two with a successful law practice manage to maintain a full all over body tan of the perfect shade of California? Her acting skills give her the screen presence to stand alongside any leading man in film today, but she appears to be over produced and almost painted.

History of Violence is a film about family, and what a family has to go through to remain a family. In this household, the family is concerned with a troubled teenager, a pick up truck with an engine that won’t turn over, a little girl who needs new shoes, and mobsters trying to whack daddy. It may not be what your family goes through on a day-to-day basis, but it is a family drama with an air of believability.