I don't remember if The Messenger specifically explains his injuries, but this new soldier drama gets considerable kick from his damaged eyes which the actor douses repeatedly with drops. He's too hardened from his tours of duty for actual tears so medicinally prescribed stand-ins will have to do. For now.
There have been so many war dramas over the years that it's rather shocking that filmmakers haven't really thought to explore the Army's Casualty Notification program prior to this. Kudos go out to writer Oren Moverman for exploring this hot button topic in his directorial debut. Casting Foster was a smart move, too. The actor has been playing mentally unbalanced and/or violent men for a few years now (Six Feet Under, 3:10 To Yuma, X-Men: Last Stand, 30 Days of Night among others…) but he gets a plum opportunity to modulate and spin those perceptions here. The Messenger usually transcends its acting vignette structure with good work from Foster, co-star Woody Harrelson and the typically riveting Samantha Morton as a newly widowed army wife. She doesn't take the news the way these soldiers expect.
Also opening: More CGI destruction porn from Roland Emmerich (The Day After Tomorrow) in 2012, Philip Seymour Hoffman plays DJ in the British comedy Pirate Radio, Uncertainty gives Joseph Gordon Levitt and Lynn Collins their own Sliding Doors as their lives split in two directions, Women in Trouble is a multicharacter comedy starring the always watchable Carla Gugino as a world famous porn star. Finally Emmy Rossum, Sandra Bernhard and Alan Cumming star in an indie high school drama Dare, the trailer of which hints at a gay kiss for Friday Night Light's goodhearted quarterback Zach Gilford.
Have any movie-going plans this weekend? Maybe you're catching up Precious (reviewed last week)?
