The Messenger (2009)

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

So much average

Overrated

The acting in this movie is really good.

What an extremely depressing movie, start to finish. Just so you know. Now, having said that, there is nothing really wrong with that. There is definitely a place for sad movies. With all of the (well-deserved) criticism of Hollywood for putting out cookie-cutter films, this is not one of them. It is serious and thoughtful. I've never been much of a fan of Woody Harrelson, what with his weird roles in such things as "Cheers" and "Natural Born Killers", and his loopy politics and hit man father, but he really brought some acting chops into this role. Samantha Morton played her role as an awkward widowed mom very well. And Lisa Joyce was nice in a small part. But I don't know if I can recommend this one.

Yes, Woody Harrelson not only can act but with a quality script, he will demonstrate that he is one of the premier screen actors today. This movie is great. This movie presents a strong and compelling story that grabs and keeps the audience's interest. Coping with the death of a loved one is difficult enough for anyone. It's about loss, irretrievable and irreversible loss. When other factors become involved, such as the circumstances surrounding the loss, this adds an additional dimension, that of the political. This is the case when the loss involves someone in the military, who dies in combat or for some other military-related reason. Under these circumstances, this causes the surviving family members and friends to question the meaning of the loss and the integrity of the officials who ordered the deceased into harm's way. This movie explores these themes, with the two principal characters, a captain and a sergeant, serving as metaphors for a society that is struggling to cope with death. For ultimately this is what this movie is about: death. The captain and the sergeant cope in different ways, neither of which succeed in easing the pain. Ultimately, the movie poses a question: Is the loss worth it? Watch the movie and decide for yourself.

-Little to no plot. -Unbelievable, let alone irrelevant, love story.-Uses cheap tactics of getting an emotion out of you.-Overly depressing to the point that it starts to get ridiculous. -Unbelievably awkward dialogue (mainly in the romance portion of the movie).-Random camera shaking! I'm getting sick of seeing this in movies. It's not a fake documentary film or a found-footage horror movie so I see no reason.-Woody Harrelson, why did you agree to be in this movie?!!!This could be the worst viewing experience I've ever had! I saw it with one other and he was just as tempted to walk out of the cinema. We didn't, and we regret it to this day.This movie might mean more to me if I was an American, but I'm not and that's not an acceptable excuse. It was released here in Ireland and I'm reviewing it in Ireland.1 star Don't see this movie

Though The Messenger shows no actual combat or scenes of fighting, it would seem to be in the vein of some of the anti-Vietnam movies of say, Oliver Stone and such, showing an alternative way how war messes people up.The Messenger is also a largely unlikeable film, being also difficult to watch and now, to review. A messenger in this sense is someone who has to knock on next-of-kin's doors and inform them that their son/daughter has been killed in action. Reactions, unsurprisingly are mixed and unpredictable.Naturally, this requires a special type of person to handle such and in military captain Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson), who's been decorated but also in A.A., we find a flawed and angry man. Taking on a younger new recruit, Staff Sgt Will Montgomery (Ben Foster) there's the obvious clash of experience and outlook and the even more inevitable buddy type of hanging out together.Unfortunately for us, both men seem to like to resort to thrashing out heavy metal and punching the walls as a means of coping with the pent up frustrations that the job's rigid rules around emotion and self control insist upon. This makes it all jarring and unsettling, which may well have been what director Oran Moverman wanted. This is Moverman's first film and is reasonably accomplished.There is some very welcome support from two of the world's finest character actors - Steve Buscemi and Brit Samantha Morton. They play father and wife, respectively of two entirely different men killed in Afghanistan and their characters feature big in the emotions of our two leads. Morton as widow, who Foster helps but fortunately (for both the film and us) does not get too emotionally involved, is probably the easiest role to both like and believe.The Messenger is a well acted, reasonably well directed film but one that is also quite long. As I said, I didn't find it particularly enjoyable and as such, cannot personally readily extend to beyond 7/10.