DVD Review: The Messenger

The Messenger – An Alliance Films Release

http://www.themessengermovie.com/

DVD Release Date: May 18th, 2010

Rated 14A for sexual content, coarse language, and mature theme.

Running time: 112 minutes

Oren Moverman (dir.)

Alessandro Camon (writer)

Oren Moverman (writer)

Nathan Larson (music)

Ben Foster as Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery

Woody Harrelson as Captain Tony Stone

Samantha Morton as Olivia Pitterson

Steve Buscemi as Dale Martin

Our reviews below:

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The Messenger DVD Review By John C.

**1/2 (out of 4)

The Messenger is the story of two casualty notification officers, Sergeant Will Montgomery (Ben Foster) and Captain Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson). Their job is to contact the NOK (next of kin) who have had their loved ones killed in battle. Although the acting and writing are often good, (watch for a pitch-perfect cameo by Steve Buscemi), and some of the scenes are handled quite nicely, the movie completely lost me with the subplot that has been advertised to be the main one. This is the relationship that develops between Will and one of the NOK, Olivia (Samantha Morton). There was opportunity here for a tender subplot, but I found the way that he stalks her and how she falls for it to be rather unsettling.

The main subject here is certainly heart-wrenching, but for a movie dealing with subjects of war, it has nothing on the Oscar-winning The Hurt Locker or the under appreciated Brothers. I don’t want to take away from the writing and performances as I do think this is mildly worth a look on DVD, but the story is disjointed, seeming more like a series of events instead of an actual narrative. More technically good than it is likable and more admirable than enjoyable, for me The Messenger loses it’s mark from the brilliant character study that is hinted at in the best of scenes, of which there are just enough for a very mild recommendation.

The DVD includes a documentary about Casualty Notification Officers and the families of fallen soldiers, a ‘behind the scenes’ featurette, a Q&A with writer/director Oren Moverman and a large portion of the cast, as well as audio commentary by Moverman, producer Lawrence Inglee and the film’s two stars.

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The Messenger DVD Review By Erin V.

*** (out of 4)

I’d heard good things about The Messenger, and had really hoped to feel the same way about this film. But for me, I honestly thought Brothers was a stronger film, and (more obviously) The Hurt Locker.

The film’s story is about two soldiers who have the job of being ‘the messenger’ – that is notifying the ‘next of kin’ of casualties. It’s a hard job, and one that they are expected to do with no showing of emotions or comfort to the ‘n.o.k.’ of any kind. Captain Stone (Woody Harrelson) is good at this, but the new recruit to the job, Sgt. Montgomery (Ben Foster) ends up having trouble with this aspect of the job and starts a (stalking) relationship with a recently widowed single mom. This could have made for an interesting moral film, but even though that’s supposed to be a main element of the plot, it just feels kind of ‘there’.

I felt while I was watching it, that the whole film was disjointed in a way, not flowing well between the different character-driven storylines. The storyline by nature is emotional, but is portrayed more so in other films. The best thing – and really the reason to see this film – is simply the acting. It’s good by all of the leads, notably, Woody Harrelson, who was nominated for an Oscar for the role.

The Messenger is worth checking it out from a filmmaking standpoint on DVD if you can, but for me, I certainly couldn’t say it’s one of the best movies of last year.

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The Messenger DVD Review By Nicole

**3/4 (out of 4)

The Messenger is a slow moving film about the soldiers who have the heart wrenching job of notifying next of kin when a soldier dies. When soldier Will Montgomery (Ben Foster) is assigned to the U.S. Army’s Casualty Notification Service, he isn’t prepared for the rule that, when notifying next of kin, the soldiers must hide all empathy. Even a pat on the shoulder is prohibited. The soldier Will is partnered with Captain Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson), who is good at his job, as he appears on the surface to be a strict, apathetic individual. However, while not on duty, both men deal with their pain through alcohol addictions. Will can’t contain his emotions however, and becomes fixated on Olivia, a recently widowed soldier’s wife and mother of a young boy.

The Messenger is an emotional film. Hard to watch at times, it shows the often hostile reactions that the grieving family members have toward the bearers of bad news. The acting and screenwriting is well done and believable. However, I found the movie a little too slow at times, and I found my attention wandering. Although The Messenger is worth checking out, mainly for the acting.

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The Messenger DVD Review By Maureen

**1/2 (out of 4)

The Messenger is an emotionally raw drama about two soldiers who work for the Army’s casualty notification unit. The senior soldier, Capt. Robert Stone (Woody Harrelson) is a rulebook soldier who shows no emotion on the job. Off duty he battles a drinking problem and has meaningless sexual encounters with women. His new unit partner, Sgt. Will Montgomery (Ben Foster) has just come off active duty with a permanent eye injury and his girlfriend has found someone else. Montgomery finds it hard to remain emotionless when contacting NOK’s (next of Kin). He too parties hard to deal with his post-tramatic stress. Eventually he crosses professional boundaries and develops an attraction to a recently widowed NOK (Samantha Morton).

While the acting from the three leads is excellent, I found it hard to connect with this movie. Perhaps the story was just too raw for my liking. However if you are a fan of any of these actors, especially Woody Harrelson then you will at least want to rent this one to see the performance that earned him an Oscar nomination.

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The Messenger DVD Review By Tony

*** (out of 4)

The Messenger follows a Casualty Notification Team whose job is to meet the NOK (next of kin of dead, missing and wounded military personnel) before anyone else. Recovering from his own war injuries, Sergent Will Montgomery (Ben Foster) is assigned to this duty for his last three months of service, alongside Captain Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson). Will finds it increasingly difficult to maintain the professional detachment required for the job, as he becomes involved with the widow Olivia (Samantha Morton). Tony’s own issues of alcoholism and alienation add to the tension.

With some memorable moments and excellent performances from the leads, The Messenger is worth seeing, but not as good as other films dealing with similar themes, such as The Hurt Locker and Brothers.

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Consensus: Although The Messenger is worth seeing for the performances and a few powerful scenes, both Brothers and The Hurt Locker are much stronger films from last year that dealt with similar subject matter. But there is still just enough here to make it worth a rental for those interested in the story. **3/4 (Out of 4)