A police detective helps a retired Army sergeant search for his son, a soldier who went missing soon after returning from Iraq. Major smuggling? A drug deal gone awry? Credit card slips, some photographs, and video clips from Iraq may hold the key. If Hank gets to the truth, what will it tell him?
The failure to avoid pat answers and cheap grandstanding dogs Haggis here as surely as it did in the overrated Crash, and robs In the Valley of Elah of much of its power.
It's a testament to "Elah's" stoicism that the heartbreak at how dishonesty undoes decades of dignity pierces without ever patronizing. It's an unforgettable, angry film that understands several simple thank-yous can trump eruptive, emotive speeches.
The movie isn't nearly as obvious or redundant as writer-director Paul Haggis's previous film, the Oscar-winning Crash, but it still feels like the work of someone trying too hard to enlighten you.
ReelzChannel.com
August 25, 2008
Jones's performance is quiet, intense, and stunning.
In the Valley of Elah is a powerful, emotional indictment of what contemporary war can do to young men. It is a potent moral tale. This is not your father's war.
Regardless of which side of the political fence one sits on, 'In the Valley of Elah''s power can't be denied and the strong acting must be appreciated.
