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Viggo Mortensen: Tom Stall
Brilliant cast and feel to this film. Love Cronenberg's recurring theme of mutation in his movies.
In HOV the medium in the spotlight is violence, be captivated as it mutates and alters everyone it touches. This man Tom Stall, played by the talented Viggo Mortensen who has a dark, mysterious side and how one incident brings out his sated violent tendencies and a dark side.
Some gory and violent scenes this film is a good look into how are aggressive animal instincts can take hold of us if given in too. Ed Harris as a man from Tom's supposed past is terrific as a vengeful hit-man while William Hurt making an appearance later gives an amazingly chilling performance.
One thing that I liked best was the changes and diversions that unfold during the film and layered story take. The differences in his son Jack who is quietly submissive to bullies at school who later after his father's change slowly becomes more aggressive, one example him beating the crap out of an annoying fellow pupil who hassles him.
Another aspect i found intriguing was Tom and his Wife Edie's sex life and how that alters from being cute and placid, conveyed in a lovely scene where she's got a cheer leading outfit on. Later a rough and aggressive sexual encounter on the stairs which erupts forth out of the swirling haze of violence that has descended upon all the people surrounding Tom's cracking showful persona.
A History of Violence is ultimately a character study, and Cronenberg has succeeded in some solid casting to drive the story. Viggo Mortonson is easily the best thing in the film - his conflicted character easily serves to win our sympathies, and succeed in making us turn away in disgust at others. Mortenson's powerful and genuine performance brings the troubled 'Tom Stall' to life in a truly believable fashion - it should be no surprise if he receives Oscar recognition next year. Maria Bello is also terrific as Stall's wife Edie, bringing genuine emotional hurt to the part. Ed Harris is suitably menacing as mobster Carl Fogarty, an effect greatly helped by his gruesome makeup, but in the end he still fails to escape the shadow of the stereotypical gangster. However, this is an aspect in which fellow mobster William Hurt succeeds, delivering a highly amusing and surprisingly comical performance. He doesn't seem to entirely fit in with the dark overtones of the movie, but so enjoyable is his performance that we don't mind in the least. However, newcomer Ashton Holmes as Tom's son Jack is a different story. Holmes shows promise for being an excellent actor, especially for one so young, but in many scenes in the film, he comes off as too emotional to really be believable. This on-and-off overacting is a shame, as he does give an impressive performance overall, and is essential to the story - including arguably the movie's most potent scene, where a distressed Tom argues with Jack over his fighting at school. Tom's argument being "We do not hit people to solve problems in this family!" Jack's angry reply is "No, in this family we shoot them!" after which he is quickly slapped by his father, to his own surprise.
A History of Violence is a bittersweet mix. The acting is exceptional and Cronenberg displays a strong and in control directorial sense throughout. But the stereotypical supporting characters and occasional gaps in logic come off as much more of a problem than they should - lending the film an uneven quality between the excellent and the unsatisfactory. But overall, A History of Violence is still an excellent and very strongly made film, enough so for us to forgive its few, but rather prominent weak points. Cronenberg has delivered one of the most powerful and thought provoking films, and it should be recognized as such.
A definite cult movie and classic, not to be missed with an ending that will leave you thinking and pondering your own conclusions.
9/10
