In the Valley of Elah (2007)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Paul Haggis

Writers (WGA):

Paul Haggis (screenplay)
Mark Boal (story) ...

Release Date:

28 September 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Sometimes finding the truth is easier than facing it.

Plot:

A career officer and his wife work with a police detective to uncover the truth behind their son's disappearance following his return from a tour of duty in Iraq.

Plot Keywords:

Telephone Call | Ethnic Slur | Male Chauvinism | Child Murder | Pickup Truck

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 5 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sat. Oct. 18	10:00 PM	MAX
Sun. Oct. 19	4:30 AM	MAX

Cast

Tommy Lee Jones	...	Hank Deerfield
Charlize Theron	...	Det. Emily Sanders
Jason Patric	...	Lt. Kirklander
Susan Sarandon	...	Joan Deerfield
James Franco	...	Sgt. Dan Carnelli
Barry Corbin	...	Arnold Bickman
Josh Brolin	...	Chief Buchwald
Frances Fisher	...	Evie
Wes Chatham	...	Cpl. Steve Penning
Jake McLaughlin	...	Spc. Gordon Bonner
Mehcad Brooks	...	Spc. Ennis Long
Jonathan Tucker	...	Spc. Mike Deerfield
Wayne Duvall	...	Detective Nugent
Victor Wolf	...	Pvt. Robert Ortiez
Brent Briscoe	...	Detective Hodge

Also Known As:

Death and Dishonor (USA) (working title)
Dans la vallée d'Elah (Belgium: French title) (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Conspiración, La (Argentina) (Venezuela) [es]
B'Emek Ha-Elah (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
Dolina nestalih (Croatia) [hr]
Eela orus (Estonia) [et]
Elah völgyében (Hungary) [hu]
Im Tal von Elah (Germany) [de]
Nella valle di Elah (Italy) [it]
No Vale das Sombras (Brazil) [pt]
No Vale de Elah (Portugal) [pt]
Saknad efter strid (Sweden) [sv]
Stin koilada tou Elah (Greece) [el]
Tanrinin vadisinde (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
W dolinie Elah (Poland) [pl]

MPAA:

Rated R for violent and disturbing content, language and some sexuality/nudity.

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Canada:14A | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Singapore:M18 | Brazil:14 | Ireland:15A | Australia:MA | UK:15 | Finland:K-15 | South Korea:15 | Germany:12 | Taiwan:R-12 | Sweden:11 | Portugal:M/16 (Qualidade) | Argentina:16 | Japan:PG-12 | Denmark:11 | Austria:16 | France:Unrated (with warning) | New Zealand:R16

Filming Locations:

Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Company:

Blackfriars Bridge Films

Trivia:

According to Paul Haggis, Clint Eastwood helped get this film greenlight.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The envelope holding the folded flag would have to much larger than the prop used in the film.

Quotes:

Hank Deerfield: [looks at flag] Just leave it like that, okay?

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: (2007-09-15)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

This Mess

Why do most critics attack this film for being heavy-handed?

Only Roger Ebert and the reviewer for Rolling Stone seem to see the truth here: this film is slow and elegiac because it deals with heavy matters, but it is never boring, not if you understand the situation and the depth of feelings being explored. It's as if reviewers don't get it because they didn't really feel what the film is saying. Saying that there have been dozens of films about how war ruins men so it's a cliché, and that this one is too dreary and slow means that a person has stopped feeling for what is really hurtful, is even in denial. And that's the theme of this film: what happens when we lose touch with what's painful and don't care any more. The film is restrained but powerful, which is why it has such a strong effect.

Jones is wonderfully grim, with a face like a road map, as he explores what happened to his son. Charlize Theron is beautiful even though she is playing a woman who is forced to act as non-sexy as possible to get on in her job in a male police force. Susan Sarandon is not, as some critic said, "underused"; she gives a performance that is all the more powerful because it is restrained. This movie should be a must see for all who believe that the Iraq war should continue until there is an honorable time for America to leave. That time is already passed.