A History of Violence (DVD)

The role of Aragorn in the Lord of the Rings films seems to have led to full exposure for Viggo Mortenson. The 2005 film 'A History of Violence' directed by David Cronenberg has Mortenson as the lead in an intricately woven gangster film, and features a good cast and some top acting. It is 92 minutes long. The Plot Tom Spall and his wife and two children lead a quiet life in the small town of Millbrook. Tom works in their cafe, and one day foils a robbery by an act of heroism. Surrounded by local media who are keen to get the exclusive on some action in a town where nthing ever happens, Tom's face ends up on local and national TV. This leads to a ...  Read the complete review

A recent viewing of the new David Cronenberg directed "Eastern Promises" in the cinema prompted me to once again dig out the DVD of his last offering starring Viggo Mortensen, the 2005 crime thriller "A History Of Violence". In this movie Mortenberg plays Tom Stall, on the surface your perfect family man, and owner of a small diner in your typical mid-Western American town. Tom is happily married with a teenage son, but his peaceful existence is brought to an abrupt end when two psychotic hillbillies attempt to rob his restaurant. Tom unexpectedly explodes into action, slams a coffee pot into a customer's face, grabs his ...  Read the complete review

Story The film starts with two robbers in a car outside a motel. We see that they are so ruthless, they kill every person at the scene of their crimes. The old guy is coming back to the car & says they need more water in that heat. The younger guy returns to the motel they had just robbed to fill up his water bottle, ignoring the dead bodies in place of staff, only to find a traumatised little girl holding a doll & looking to him for help. He shoots her. A family guy & very nice man, Tom Stall, running a simple café in his hometown is the next planned victim of their brutal attacks, despite the fact his business could not have much ...  Read the complete review

In 'A History of Violence' directed by David Cronenberg, Viggo Mortensen plays Tom Stall, a seemingly happily married family chap living in small town America with his wife Edie (Maria Bello), son Jack and baby daughter Sarah. The family run a small diner in relative harmony until one afternoon when two retarded serial killers drop in for some coffee and a slice of cherry pie. The two unwelcome customers are not very polite. They begin threatening the staff and clients, stab Tom in the foot and refuse to say 'please' when requesting a café latte. Tom unexpectedly jumps into action (this is before he is stabbed in the foot with a knife and thus pinned to the ground). He ...  Read the complete review

Introduction ----------------- Another film sourced from a graphic novel published in 1997, "A History of Violence" is directed by stranger than strange filmmaker David Cronenberg, yet there is not a pesticide-smoking alien nor any strange surgical instruments and procedures in sight. Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) lives in small town USA with his wife Edie (Maria Bello) and their two children, the pacifist teenager Jack (Ashton Holmes) who is bullied remorselessly at high school and their young daughter Sarah (Heidi Hayes). Tom is a well-liked member of the small local community in which he runs a modest diner, saying a cheery hello by ...  Read the complete review