A History of Violence

David Cronenberg, USA, Germany, 2005, 96 minutes

Tom Stall is a mild mannered small town guy. He has a loving wife, two adorable children and a owns a popular diner on the town's main street - he knows his customers and his customers know him right back. Joey Cusack is a notorious Mafia hitman, famed for having gouged out eyes with barbed wire, and noted for his bloody disappearance from Philly. Could they be the same person? Could Tom have an unknown past, concealed from his friends and family? A history of violence?

Two hardened criminals are on the run across the Midwest, leaving a trail of brutally murdered innocents behind them, however when they step into Tom Stall's diner, intending to rob it, he manages to disarm and execute both of the would be thieves. At first his family and community are amazed at this act of heroism, but when a scar-faced gangster (Ed Harris) arrives in town and starts to ask some probing questions about just how Tom was able to dispatch armed two thugs in the blink of an eye, things begin to turn a little sour. Tom's wife Edie (Maria Bello) is forced to face the unpleasant possibility that her husband may not be who he says he is, and, swimming through a mixture of conflicting emotions, is forced to make a decision of whether it matters or not?

A History of Violonce is probably Cronenberg's most accessible film to date, and also one of the best graphic novel adaptation's yet made - earning an Academy Award nomination for best adapted screenplay. The central premise - is Tom who he says he is? - maintains a sharp edge on the proceedings, keeping the viewer asking who they believe. A surprisingly good central performance from Viggo "Aragorn" Mortensen is bolstered by the excellent support of Maria Bello and Ed Harris - plus William Hurt's Oscar nominated cameo is quite, quite, brilliant.

Historically David Cronenberg has never shied away from controversy; films like Videodrome, Shivers, Naked Lunch and especially Crash managed to inflame large parts of the community; while A History of Violence doesn't quite reach the "body-horror" extremes that his other movies have visited, it's still a fairly unpleasant, but brilliant, movie.

Review by George Williamson
Written for EUFS Programme Autumn 2006