“Maybe there's no such thing as heroes. Maybe there are just people like my dad. I finally came to understand why they were so uncomfortable being called heroes. Heroes are something we create, something we need.”
-- James Bradley from Flags Of Our Fathers
“And all the jarheads killing and dying, they will always be me. We are still in the desert.”
-- Anthony Swofford from Jarhead
If In The Valley Of Elah was intended to be Paul Haggis’s polemic against the Iraq War; it does not work as well as it should. I believe In The Valley Of Elah is much more. It is not meant to be seen as a polemic, regardless of what others are saying. To look at the film in such black and white terms is to dismiss it as another film of the week. It contains some of the best acting of Tommy Lee Jones’ career. In The Valley Of Elah is based on a Playboy article by Mark Boal. The film is also a remarkable improvement of Paul Haggis’ previous effort, Crash. I know the film won a best picture Oscar, but I found the film had a made for TV quality about it. The film benefited from some quality performances, but Haggis’ television roots were very evident. I like Crash, but it was over praised; a kind of Short Cuts lite. It is of no consequence because his new film is a staggering achievement brought to incredible life by Tommy Lee Jones. One can only assume that Paul Haggis paid very close attention to Clint Eastwood’s directorial style. Somehow Eastwood’s method sank in from Million Dollar Baby, Flags Of Our Fathers and Letters From Iwo Jima. I understand where the cynicism of Flags Of Our Fathers came from. I am sure that was part of Paul Haggis’ contribution to that underrated film. This is a police procedural on the surface with much deeper issues beneath.
Watching Tommy Lee Jones’ portrayal of Hank Deerfield unfold throughout the course of the film is astonishing. Tommy Lee Jones has a commanding presence, much more than he has had in the past. He is a great, but underrated actor. As an audience, we take him for granted. We sometimes miss his greater work in Cobb, Rolling Thunder, JFK, Rules Of Engagement, The Executioner’s Song, and especially his directorial debut, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. He was doing great work long before The Fugitive and he has done a lot of stellar work since. He helped make the Men In Black films, The Client, Natural Born Killers and Space Cowboys very enjoyable movie going experiences. It seemed that Andrew Davis and Oliver Stone knew they were dealing with gold early on in his career. Still with all that has come before, Jones digs deep for the role of Hank Deerfield. Because Hank Deerfield owes more to the characters that George C. Scott played in such films as Hardcore and Rage. It also brings to mind Jack Lemmon in Missing and Michael Douglas in Traffic. In some ways, Jones performance recalls Philippe Noiret in The Clockmaker. I have never seen this side of Tommy Lee Jones. It is raw power unleashed. As the film progresses, Roger Deakins’ camera shows a man, father, and husband coming to terms with the effects of war on every facet of life. Deerfield does not have to say much; his face reveals everything. Jones is not channeling Scott, but rather taking those angry and distraught father figures to their logical conclusions. Paul Haggis originally wrote the part for Clint Eastwood, but Eastwood did not want to act in any more films. Tommy Lee Jones was the only logical choice.
When Hank Deerfield gets a call from Fort Rudd, New Mexico, that his son has gone AWOL. He is confused because he thinks his son, Mike is still in Iraq. It is important to note that the film takes place in November of 2004 during the Presidential election and the U.S. push into Fallujah. Hank decides to go to Fort Rudd to find out what happened. Hank is a retired military MP; he is a Vietnam Veteran who has done his service for his country. He leaves behind his worried wife, Joan, played by Susan Sarandon. When he gets down to Fort Rudd, his worst fears are realized. His son’s body is found in pieces and burned. The dismembered death is made to look like drug gang murder. His investigatory skills are above everyone else’s in the film; he knows more about crime scenes than anyone else on the police department. He is a thorn in the police and military’s side. He enlists the aid of an inexperienced police investigator, Emily Saunders played by Charlize Theron. Theron and Sarandon have small parts in this film, but they create vivid portrayals with their brief onscreen time. As Joan, Sarandon does some of her best work in years. As we learn, their other son was killed in an Army helicopter accident ten years ago. When Joan yells at Hank over the phone about losing both of her boys to the military, we feel her loss. The investigation is a tug of war between the local police and military led by Jason Patric’s Lt. Kirklander. At first, the soldiers in Mike’s company do not say much about what happened. As time goes on, the truth to seep out. We learn about Mike through a series of videos found on his cell phone; we learn about him through his fellow soldiers. As we learn about Mike, the videos and photos show us soldiers at war; they provide the vital clues about Mike’s death. There is no on/off switch. There is no time to decompress. How do we expect men and women to be in harm’s way one day and back here the next? That is one of the core issues of the film. It seems with each soldier’s tale; we get a clearer a picture of Mike Deerfield. Their stories make sense to Hank. He understands this all too well. As war veteran, he realizes it is not just this war, but all wars have this effect on the soldiers who fight them. When the ugly truth of how and why Mike was murdered comes out in a confession, Hank understands what has happened. His facial expressions during the final confession reveal the torture and fatigue of a whole nation.
The film attains a mythic stature due to its title. In The Valley Elah refers to the biblical tale of David and Goliath. It is a very fitting title. The David versus Goliath motif could refer to many things in the film: Hank’s investigation of hindered by the U.S. military, Emily’s battle with her own police department, or it could be the individual against the Goliath of the War itself. The film’s title refers to many things. Hank tells the story to Emily’s son one night. He cannot read C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe to him because he does not have the patience for it. He decides to tell this story to the boy named David. Hank decides to tell him the biblical origin of his name. It is a scene of touching simplicity which is very powerful. The story is seen as way of easing David’s fear of darkness; he sleeps with the door open so the hallway light comes in. After hearing the story, he decides he can let the door close a little bit. It is not only David who undergoes a profound change. Hank’s metamorphosis is the core of the film.
On his way to Fort Rudd, he drives by a school that has the American flag hanging upside down. This angers him and he stops at the school. He gets someone from the school to correct this problem. An upside down flag is used as a distress signal. By the film’s end, Hank sees things differently. It is a remarkable change for such a character. Dissent comes from the least likely places and people. By the film’s end, distress is the language of our times.
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