A History of Violence

A History of Violence
2005
New Line DVD

Directed by David Cronenberg and written by Josh Olson,A History of Violence is a film about a man who is trying to escape his past. Viggo Mortensen is Tom Stall. Tom owns a restaurant in a small town. One night some people try to rob the place and Tom quickly kills both of him. This causes him to become an overnight celebrity in the town. But all the media attention brings someone from Tom's past to the town.

I remember hearing about this film before it came out,and being a fan of Cronenberg's films I wanted to see it. But the movie only got a limited theatrical release. For some reason I completely forgot about it and never rented the DVD. Then back in 2008 I was on my way to work and stopped at Dollar General to get some snacks. Well they had the DVD and it was only $5. The cashier saw me looking at it and told me it was one of the best films she had seen in years. So I bought it and watched it that night at work.

Well after watching it,the next evening I got online and did some research on the movie. Turns out it is based on a graphic novel that was published in 1997 by Paradox Press,which was an imprint of DC comics. Also learned that to get a R rating the film was slightly cut. Some scenes of violence were shortened. As far as I know the uncut version has not been released on DVD in region 1.

Now I will have to admit that I have loved pretty much every film David Cronenberg  has done. And of his more recent work this is my favorite. The main cast are all really good. Viggo does an amazing job with what had to be a hard role. Maria Bello is really good as his wife. Before seeing this film I don't remember ever seeing her in anything else. Ed Harris and William Hurt also do great with their roles. This has to one of the most accessible Cronenberg films so far.

The DVD has a decent amount of extra features. There is a commentary with Mr Cronenberg. A making of documentary. And three featurettes. The best of which shows the differences between the US cut and the International cuts. There is also some deleted scenes. A History of Violence gets a A-.