Henry Saw: The Messenger

So this is the over-rated independent film of the season...


This is a film that's been getting a lot of buzz in the indie circles. Staring Ben Foster and Woody Harrelson, it's about two soldiers who are given the job of telling "N.O.K.s" (next of kins) when their loved ones have died or been killed in war. The film especially focuses on Foster's character, Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery, who was injured in battle and is forced into taking on this "mission". He doesn't like the job, it doesn't suit him, and he struggles to keep proper emotional distance from the people whose hearts he breaks, and to adjust to life back on the home front.

The film, which one could easily being re-imagined as a stage play, inter-cuts between the two soldiers breaking bad news to different families and also interacting with each other and learning more about the demons the other is facing.



The film is based purely on the performances...and while they're solid throughout...I never fully believed the two main actors. Foster, who was very good in 3:10 to Yuma, is receiving a lot of positive press for his work here and I just don't really see it. He's fine, and its a very hard role to play, but I was hardly blown away. He's serviceable...but too often did I feel like one of his scenes was way too rehearsed or that he was reciting a speech more than really acting it. Harrelson is slightly better but has a more stereotypical, and less interesting, character to work with. Samantha Morton co-stars as one of the notified relatives of a dead soldier, and though she's always good, I found her character incredibly hard to buy. The standout in the movie is Steve Buscemi, who appears in two upsetting scenes as one of the next of kins, and who really impressed me in the very little time he had on screen.

The direction from first-timer Oren Moverman is fine, if a little obvious at times, and doesn't seem to get as much out of his script as a more experienced director might have. This film deals with some of the same issues as the last moments of The Hurt Locker, but what that film did perfectly in 5 minutes, this film fumbles for over 100.



I don't think this is really a movie worth seeking out. It's dealing with some interesting issues, and is a very strong concept for a movie (or book, or play) but never fully came together as a coherent piece. Too many scenes felt forced, or deliberate, and I ultimately didn't care about where the characters ended up.

Grade: C+

Best Scene: The first Steve Buscemi sequence...