The War

Starring: Elijah Wood, Kevin Costner, Mare Willingham, Lexi Randall, LaToya Chisholm, Lucas Black
Directed by: Jon Avnet
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Drama
1994

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A family struggles together in Mississippi in the 1970s. The father (Kevin Costner) with horrors he saw in Vietnam, the wife (Mare Willingham) with supporting the family while her husband is out of work, the son (Elijah Wood) with neighborhood bullies, and the daughter (Lexi Randall) with racism at school.

Review:

Tim: The War is a tearjerker drama that does a number of things right, while dropping the ball in other areas. As a whole, this movie gets close to succeeding, while actually falling just short. I didn't hate this movie- there were definitely some great aspects. However, as a whole, Jon Avnet's drama ultimately disappoints. This probably sounds wishy washy, and it is- this is an up and down movie, and that it makes it difficult to judge. For much of the film, I was enjoying it. However, the end is fairly weak, which brings the whole movie down. This is one of those Jekyll and Hyde films- some good, some bad.

The cast is definitely the best aspect. I liked Kevin Costner as the troubled father. Costner is such a likeable, charismatic guy, and here, he is effortlessly relaxed and fairly effective. I have to admit that he did on occasion appear to be mailing this one in. He was interested, but there were limits- Costner certainly didn't appear to be shooting for any end-of-the-year recognition for his performance. While Costner is fairly good, the real star of the film is young Elijah Wood. Wood is tremendous as the young son. He is so incredible in the role, and I loved his scenes with Costner. Wood is a likeable, enjoyable actor, and he lets the audience identify with and root for him. Perhaps the best moments of the film all involve Costner and Wood, and their relationship together. Mare Willingham and Lexi Randall are both good as well, although not as good as Costner or Wood. The real strength of this film are these four actors, and their close knit but troubled family. I really enjoyed these characters, and I liked this aspect of the movie.

I also enjoyed the portrayal of small town, rural life in the 1970s here. That time was so much simpler and it comes to life in vivid detail here. This was a time when defending a tree fort was worth dying for, when parents imparted unforgettable wisdom, and life was very different than it is today. That focus of the film is very welcome.

However, there were some weaker areas, too. The movie oftentimes moves too slow (representative of rural 1970s?) and so the movie feels too long at 126 minutes. It needed to be streamlined more. Plus, as much as I like watching children fight over a tree fort, the climactic fort battle became a bit too over-the-top. Without going into too much detail, the level of violence was unrealistic, plus, a tractor actually explodes into a giant fireball. That was the moment when this movie really lost me. Plus, too often, the movie strays into the melodramatic. There was also a lot covered here, which made the film feel a bit fragmented. We have commentary on the rural poor, racism, bullies, post-traumatic stress disorder and Vietnam, dangerous working conditions, and more. All these topics were explored by never fully examined. Still, these elements all do combine to form a bit of a tapestry on the 1970s. I also did appreciate that the movie refrained from being too preachy.

There are quite a few things to like about The War. There are some emotional moments, and I really did enjoy the portrayal of this Mississippi family and their ups and downs. While the movie occasionally felt silly and too slow, I still generally enjoyed it. While this isn't exactly a good movie, and I can easily think of far better tearjerkers, it is still a fairly decent drama.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



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