Synopsis:

In Monroe, Tennessee, Hank Deerfield (Tommy Lee Jones), an aging warrior, gets a call that his son, just back from 18 months' fighting in Iraq, is missing from his base. Deerfield pushes himself into the investigation, marked by jurisdictional antagonism between the Army and local police. Working mostly with a new detective, Emily Sanders (Charlize Theron), Hank seems to close in on what happened. Major smuggling? A drug deal gone awry? Credit card slips, some photographs, and video clips from Iraq may hold the key. If Hank gets to the truth, what will it tell him?

Brian's Rating: A- : A surprisingly good movie with a interesting, and well done, perspective on the illegal occupation we have going in Iraq.  Tommy Lee Jones plays almost a copy of the role he played in "No Country for Old Men" and is excellent in it.

I'll save the plot synopsis for the official review.  The story lends a good perspective on how Iraq messes up the soldiers that are over there, touches on some of the atrocities that are happening, and gives an in depth view of what PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) really means at a personal level.

I quickly became attached to the characters of both Deerfield's dad, Hank (Tommy Lee Jones), as well as his son.  It was impressed on how the movie lays out the story for the son, Michael, in small pieces as his dad helps investigate his disappearance.  Even though we only meet his son through pictures, a few garbled video clips, and some recounted statements, as a viewer you still feel like you come to know him, and by the end of the movie you clearly can empathize with what he was dealing with.

The pacing is done well, the dialog is captivating, and the performance of Tommy Lee Jones make this a movie that is worth seeing.  Knocks against it include some mediocre acting by a couple of the supporting roles (not Charlise Theron's best work), and some obvious procedural inequities.  For instance, the father of the subject of investigation would never be allowed to get as close to the investigation as he did.

This is an odd movie in that the more I reflect on it afterward, the more I like it.  Originally, I was thinking a B, started as a B+ when I began writing, and ended at an A-.

Rent the movie, its worth it.

Sebastian's Rating: B : it was a good story but it was too boring. crash was better i reckon

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