THE MESSENGER

You wouldn’t think that a film that chronicles the same action over and over to be all that compelling. But when that action involves walking up to a perfect stranger unannounced, and telling them “I’m very sorry but your loved one was killed today”…it’s a routine that shakes you every time you have to watch it. Such is the story of THE MESSENGER, one of the best films of the last year.

THE MESSENGER tells the tale of Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery (Ben Foster), who has recently returned from Iraq with severe injuries. By the time he is released from the VA, he still has three months left in his tour. But rather than re-deploy hi to Iraq, The Army enlists him in the Casualty Notification service. He now serves directly under Captain Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson), and must deliver notices of soldiers being killed in action to their next of kin.

While the movie takes a somewhat familiar turn in its final act, it is nonetheless a gripping film. We are forced to watch over and over as everyday people get the worst possible news, and it’s how they all seem to handle it so very differently that makes the audience stick with it. What’s more is the way we can only watch their reaction, and cannot actually reach out to them. This directly echoes the soldiers’ direct orders never to touch the next of kin.

Montgomery doesn’t completely follow this order as he pussyfoots around actually getting involved with the wife of a fallen soldier, Olivia (Samantha Morton). Because of how fucked up they both feel at the same moment, they find themselves reaching out to each other…and they share a scene together in her kitchen that might very well be the most sadly tender thing I’ve ever seen.

While it’s nominated for a few Oscars, this film is indeed difficult to track down right now. It is a tough watch, but for the performances of Foster and Harrelson alone, take my word for it – it’s worth the search.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to cry myself to sleep.