A History of Violence

2005 "Tom Stall had the perfect life...until he became a hero."
7.4| 1h36m| R| en| More Info
Released: 23 September 2005 Released
Producted By: New Line Cinema
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

An average family is thrust into the spotlight after the father commits a seemingly self-defense murder at his diner.

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Reviews

Micitype Pretty Good
VeteranLight I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.
Humaira Grant It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.
Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.
Osmosis Iron You just can't escape the violence can you? It justifies the "violence" in it's name more than enough! Shows that Cronenberg can do excellent comic book adaptations as well as creepy sci-fi.
Smoreni Zmaj Besides Road to Perdition, this is, I think, the only non-superhero movie based on DC comics and convincingly the best Kronenberg film I've ever saw. I do not know how to present a brief summary for this movie without spoilers, so I'll skip story itself. At first glance, this is a thriller with superbly directed action scenes, explicit violence and wild sex. But if you look more closely, you'll notice that camera doesn't linger on thriller aspects. It focuses more on emotional expressions of characters, making this movie more family drama than thriller. Great choice of actors and excellent characterization. Even characters that appear briefly have depth and you will experience them as real people, as if you personally met them. Viggo Mortensen, Ed Harris, William Hurt, Ashton Holmes and Peter MacNeill are all perfect in their roles, but Maria Bello literally brought hers to life. She was nominated for Golden Globe and in my opinion she deserved at least nomination for Oscar as well. Even if in time I completely forget about this movie, I surely won't forget her as Edie Stall.8,5/10
Ross622 I've always wanted to see David Cronenberg's "A History of Violence" for many years but when the opportunity presented itself to me and I watched it I knew it was going to be great, but at the same time it was far different than the movie I pictured but in a good way of course. The main character of this movie is Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) an ordinary working class man who lives in the town of Milbrook, Indiana with his wife Edie (Maria Bello) and their two children, and also owns a local diner which is non-coincidentally called "Stall's diner".However Stall's life changes when one night he is about to close up shop in his restaurant and two guys come in and try to rob the diner in order to get themselves more money that they didn't earn out of desperation because of being broke and due to the fact that they're threatening the lives of every single person in the restaurant Stall takes matters into his own hands killing both men and as a result he is hailed a hero for his actions, although he isn't very proud of what he did, which unveils a secret that he had concealed for 20 years which I will not spoil. After the failed robbery a mobster named Carl Fogarty (Ed Harris) comes into the restaurant with one of his men and tries telling him that his name isn't really Tom Stall but rather Joey Cusack and tries to make him remember his past by showing him scars on his face and that he is blind in one eye. There is another scene in the movie where Edie takes her daughter to the mall and she sees Fogarty again and he tells her to ask her husband a very shocking question which is spoiled by the trailer of which I won't mention. After dealing with Fogarty and his men for the last time Tom or Joey decides to drive to Philadelphia to meet his alleged brother Richie Cusack (William Hurt) who also happens to be a mobster, and after the meeting Tom goes back to his family and nobody knows what happens next. The movie is a nearly flawless adaptation John Wagner and Vince Locke's graphic novel (which I didn't read), and a brilliant Oscar nominated screenplay by Josh Olson, as well as Cronenberg's expert direction. Also with the performances are very good with standout work from Mortensen, Harris, and Hurt (who received an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor). The only problem that I had with the movie was Maria Bello's performance which wasn't very impressive to me and made me feel like another actress could have played the part of Edie Stall so much better than she did but then again that's just me. Mortensen's work is comparable to that of Robert Mitchum's performance in "Out of the Past" (1947) because in both movies the main characters deal with a troubled past and tried to keep it a secret but couldn't take it any longer. The performances given by both Harris and Hurt compare among the greatest gangster portrayals in all of movie history along with Jack Nicholson's Frank Costello in "The Departed" (2006), James Cagney's Cody Jarrett in "White Heat" (1949), Marlon Brando's Don Vito Corleone in "The Godfather" (1972), Al Pacino's Michael Corleone throughout the entire "Godfather" series, Ray Liotta's Henry Hill in "Goodfellas" (1990), Daniel Day-Lewis's Bill "the Butcher" Cutting in "Gangs of New York" (2002) along with so many others. I wish this movie could have gotten more accolades at the Oscars than it did 11 years ago for example not only a supporting actor nomination for William Hurt, but there also could have been one for Ed Harris as well, along with a best actor nomination for Mortensen. This is a violent movie but however it isn't the most violent movie that I've ever seen, and is not suitable for younger viewers who want to watch it at home, which is why it got the R rating in the first place. This is one of the best crime thrillers that I've ever seen , as well as being one of the best films of 2005.
sanjay lathish Been a fan of viggo mortensen since watching lord of the rings trilogy and eastern promises. The attitude/screen presence this guy can bring to the screen is near perfect and can only be matched by some, and he delivers yet again in the cronenberg movie A History of Violence. As the name suggest the violence in the movie is good, the action scenes are superbly coordinated. The story gets predictable as the movie goes, but still Cronenberg keeps us immersed in the movie. u know cronenberg is a great directer by just watching the opening scenes which include the family of the protagonist. at the very moment we will feel the bond between the family. every family member did their utmost best, special mention for Maria Bello(as she was great as the wife). the character development of the protagonist is well and tightly done. if you loved eastern promise, i am sure u will love this one too.