From: Reviews and Criticism of Vietnam War Theatrical and Television Dramas ( Compiled by John K

Home , In the Valley of Elah, Mark Boal, Paul Haggis

From: Reviews and Criticism of Vietnam War Theatrical and Television Dramas (http://www.lasalle.edu/library/vietnam/FilmIndex/home.htm) compiled by John K. McAskill, La Salle University ([email protected])

I5425 IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH (USA, 2007)

Credits: director/writer, Paul Harris ; story, Mark Boal, Paul Harris. Cast: Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron, Jason Patric, Susan Sarandon. Summary: Murder mystery set in contemporary New Mexico. Retired Army CID sergeant and Vietnam vet Hank Deerfield (Jones) receives a call from Fort Rudd (N.M.) that his son Mike, whose unit has just returned from Iraq, is missing. When he arrives there, Hank finds that Mike’s buddies are keeping mum and that base officers like Lt. Kirklander (Patric) are bureaucratic lackeys with little interest in the case. Hank gradually earns the respect of Emily Sanders (Theron), a local civilian detective, and pushes the case to a full blown murder investigation. Ultimately Deerfield discovers that Mike was murdered by one his buddies, a victim of the unrecognized PTSD that plagues many of the recent returnees from Iraq.

Allen, Boo. “Valley of shadows; Jones dogged by death in ‘Elah’” Denton record- chronicle [TX] (Sep 21, 2007), Entertainment, p. 3D. Andersen, Soren. “A quietly blistering vision of war” The news tribune [Tacoma, WA] (Sep 21, 2007), Entertainment & GO, p. F17. Ansen, David. “The Hollywood war front: angry filmmakers are gung-ho on Iraq movies, but the war as entertainment is proving to be a tough sell to audiences” Newsweek 150/15 (Oct 8, 2007), p. 66. ______. “Turning back the clock” Newsweek 150/13 (Sep 24, 2007), p. 14. Applebaum, Stephen. “Real-life horrors” Weekend Australian (Oct 20, 2007), p. 21. Axmaker, Sean. “Tommy Lee Jones shines in ‘Elah’” Seattle post-intelligencer (Sep 14, 2007), What’s happening, p. 5. Barnes, Brad. “‘In the Valley of Elah’ comes home; Film’s plot unrecognizable as Columbus’ story” Columbus ledger-enquirer [GA] (Sep 17, 2007), p. A1. Beale, Lewis. “ ‘Valley’ leads to the bottom of her heart; Sarandon’s concern for military families inspires her role as mother of slain soldier” Newsday (Sep 13, 2007), Pt. II, p. B04. Beifuss, John. “An anti-war ‘Crash’; Paul haggis follows his race-oriented Oscar winner with a look at the Iraq war” Commercial appeal [Memphis, TN] (Sep 21, 2007), Playbook, p. G6-7. Borrelli, Christopher. “‘The Valley of Elah’ sweaty with meaning” The blade [Toledo, OH] (Sep 28, 2007), Peach, p. C1. Breznican, Anthony. “Tommy Lee Jones; Don’t call ‘In the Valley of Elah’ unpatriotic unless you want a fight” USA today (Sep 12, 2007), Life, p. 8B. Burr, Ty (see under Morris, Wesley) Carr, David. “The media equation; Red carpet meets harsh war” New York times (Sep 17, 2007), sec. C, p. 1. Chester, Rodney. “Lights, action, fire!” Courier mail [Australia] (Oct 13, 2007), Etc., p. M06. Cieply, Michael. “With real bullets still flying, Hollywood brings war home” New York times (July 26, 2007), p. A1, A17. Clines, Peter. “Paul Haggis on ‘In the Valley of Elah’” Screenwriting 14/5 (Sep/Oct 2007), p. 53-59. Covert, Colin. “Tommy Lee Jones goes to war; ‘In the Valley of Elah’ pits a man’s search for answers against his sense of duty” Star tribune [Minneapolis, MN] (Sep 20, 2007), VITA.MN, p. 27. Curran, Tim. “Director’s choice: Mark Isham” Film score monthly 12/10 (Oct 2007), p. 1. Dawson, Angela. “‘Elah’s’ substance drew stars to story” Knoxville news sentinel (Sep 21, 2007), Preview, p. 98. Denby, David. “Soldiers: ‘In the Valley of Elah’” New Yorker 83/28 (Sep 24, 2007), p. 188. Dudek, Duane. “Valley of sadness; ‘Elah’ probes depths of loss in context of Iraq war” Milwaukee journal sentinel (Sep 21, 2007), E cue, p. 3. Ebert, Roger. “Into the ‘Valley’ of greatness; Actors elevate drama about a missing son just back from war” Chicago sun-times (Sep 14, 2007), Movies, p. B1. Edelstein, David. “Post-traumatic mystery: compared with Crash, Paul Haggis’s Iraq film is devastatingly restrained…” New York (Sep 17, 2007), p. ? Elliott, David. “Haggis’ ‘In the Valley of Elah’ a shaped charge aimed inward” San Diego union-tribune (Sep 21, 2007), Lifestyle, p. E-2. Erstein, Hap. “In the shadow of chaos” Palm Beach post [FL] (Sep 21, 2007), TGIF, p. 7. Everhart, Bill. “In the Valley of Elah” Berkshire eagle [Pittsfield, MA] (Oct 1, 2007), Reviews Art, p. ? Feld, Rob. “Body bags” The journal of the writers guild of America 11/8 (Nov 2007), p. 30-35. Fibbs, Brandon. “Review: ‘Elah’ exposes, bemoans war wounds” The gazette [Colorado Springs, CO] (Sep 28, 2007), Go, p. GO5. Foster, Jason. “‘Valley of Elah’ just misses the mark” The herald [Rock Hill, SC] (Sep 21, 2007), Ticket, p. 3D. Fritz, Jeanine. “‘In the Valley of Elah’; Subdued performances drive Haggis’ military mystery” The daily camera [Boulder, CO] (Sep 21, 2007), Friday magazine, p. G6. Gabrenya, Frank. “Drama examines war’s hidden toll” Columbus dispatch [OH] (Sep 21, 2007), Life & arts, p. 3D. Gaul, Lou. “‘Valley of Elah’ a bleak but compelling mystery” The intelligencer [Doylestown, PA] (Sep 21, 2007), Features to do, p. D3. Gensler, Howard. “Tight-lipped Tommy; It’s not easy getting opinions from the veteran actor” Philadelphia daily news (Sep 19, 2007), p. 37. Germain, David. “‘Elah’ director Haggis ‘failed’ his way onto big screen; After years of working for television, he wrote about his passion” Grand Rapids press (Sep 22, 2007), Your life, p. E2. ______. “Film dramas examine Iraq war, U.S. policies; Wave of movies take look at various aspects of conflict” The Oklahoman [Oklahoma City, OK] (Sep 14, 2007), Weekend look, p. 17D. Gilsdorf, Ethan. “Hollywood’s new mandate: bring the Iraq War home” Christian Science monitor (Sep 28, 2007), p. 11. Gleiberman, Owen. “Casualty of war” Entertainment weekly no. 953-954 (Sep 14, 2007), p. 124-25. Goodykoontz, Bill. “A father’s investigation sheds light on horrors of war in ‘Valley of Elah’” Arizona republic [Phoenix, AZ] (Sep 21, 2007), Movie preview, p. P1. Griffin, John. “Return from war proves deadly; Paul Haggis’s new murder mystery follows a father on quest for answers when his son disappears after returning from Iraq” The gazette [Montreal] (Sep 28, 2007), Arts & life, p. D1. Groen, Rick. “Dissecting Haggis; Nothing about the Canadian director suggests any inner turmoil. But his work, including In the Valley of Elah, is full of conflicts, Rick Groen writes” The globe and mail [Canada] (Sep 20, 2007), The globe review, p. R1. ______.“Okay, we see the Davids. But where’s Goliath?; Paul Haggis’s anti- Iraq war film falls into a familiar trap, with its lofty social theme ultimately defeated by its own artifice” The globe and mail [Canada] (Sep 21, 2007), The globe review, p. R5. Hartl, John. “Bringing the invisible scars of U.S. soldiers into focus; Interview Paul haggis, director, ‘In the Valley of Elah’” Seattle times (Sep 21, 2007), Northwest life, p. E1. ______. “Caught in the grip of Iraq war; Movie review” Seattle times (Sep 14, 2007), Movie times, p. H19. Hesse, Monica. “Paul Haggis, the director success didn’t spoil” Washington post (Sep 13, 2007), Style, p. C3. Hewitt, Chris. “Annoyances aside, ‘Valley’ plays to director’s, actors strengths” St. Paul pioneer press [MN] (Sep 21, 2007), Weekend life, p. E4. Howell, Peter. “Looking for David in the Valley of Elah” Toronto star (Sep 21, 2007), Entertainment, p. E06. Hunter, Stephen. “ ‘Valley of Elah’ spins an all-too-timeless tale” Washington post (Sep 14, 2007), Style, p. C04. James, Nick. “War, lust, spies and quaint conceits” Sight and sound 17/11 (Nov 2007), p. 38-42. Johnson, Brian D. “The killer within” Maclean’s 120/37 (Sep 24, 2007), p. 83-4. Kahane, David. “Antiwar falling” National review (Sep 24, 2007), p. ? Keane, Meghan. “Slinging arrows wildly into the air” The New York sun (Sep 14, 2007), Arts and letters, p. 16. Kelly, Brendan. “Filmmakers are bringing the Iraq war home” The gazette [Montreal] (Sep 8, 2007), Culture, p. E3. Kelly, Christopher. “Down on the ‘Valley’; Sitting through Paul Haggis’ preachy, overly somber effort feels like serving a tour of duty” Fort Worth star- telegram (Sep 21, 2007), Go, p. S5. Kimmel, Daniel M. “Muddled politics undoes terrific acting in ‘Elah’” Telegram and gazette [Worcester, MA] (Sep 28, 2007), Entertainment, p. E3. Knight, Chris. “Bringing home the hell that is war” National post [Canada] (Sep 21, 2007), Post movies, p. PM3. Koehler, Robert. “In the Valley of Elah” Variety 296/44 (Sep. 3-9, 2007), p. 53. Lampley, Jonathan Malcolm. “Movie review: In the Valley of Elah” The Tennessean [Nashville, TN] (Sep 20, 2007), Online edition, Rage. Lawson, Terry. “‘Elah’ is a call to anger, action; Director put heart into war movie” Detroit free press (Sep 19, 2007), p. 1D. ______. “Heavy-handed message mars war film” Detroit free press (Sep 21, 2007), p. 1C. Lee, Young and Shaw, Jessica. “Combat zoning” Entertainment weekly no. 957 (Oct 5, 2007), p. 16. Lemire, Christy. “Lost chance; Despite strong performances, ‘Valley’ still gets itself lost” The press of Atlantic City (Sep 27, 2007), At the shore, p. 34. Lepage, Mark. “Hollywood goes to war; The American movie machine is cranking out films that raise troubling questions about Iraq – even when it’s not openly the storyline” The gazette [Montreal] (Oct 13, 2007), Culture, p. E1. Levy, Shawn. “Flags of our sons” The Oregonian [Portland, OR] (Sep 21, 2007), Arts & entertainment, p. 33. Lindsey, Craig D. “‘Valley of Elah’ mostly a drag” News & observer [Raleigh, NC] (Sep 21, 2007), What’s up, p. WUP5. Long, Tom. “Cost of war runs deep in ‘Valley’” Detroit news (Sep 21, 2007), My movies, p. 1F. Longino, Bob. “First look: Battles on the big screen: ‘Elah,’ others explore the war in Iraq” Atlanta journal-constitution (Sep 15, 2007), Living, p. E2. Longsdorf, Amy. “Theron tunes down her glamour to disappear into a detective role” Morning call [Allentown, PA] (Sep 20, 2007), Go guide, p. GO14. “Lost in the ‘Valley’” Washington post (Sep 14, 2007), Weekend, p. T34. Lumenick, Lou. “Father’s grief digs up war’s skeletons” New York post (Sep 14, 2007), p. 43. Mayfield, Dan. “Haggis found home for ‘Elah’ in Duke City” Albuquerque journal (Sep 21, 2007), People, p. C1. McCarthy, Ellen. “When the war comes home to the home front” Washington post (Sep 14, 2007), Weekend, p. WE33. McCarthy, Todd. “Battle fatigue?” Variety (Sep. 17-23, 2007), p. 8. McDonnell, Brandy. “Film’s examination of war heavy-handed” The Oklahoman [Oklahoma City, OK] (Sep 21, 2007), Weekend look, p. 6D. Means, Sean P. “Review: Haggis turns a perceptive lens on war’s human cost” Salt Lake tribune (Sep 20, 2007), p. ? Meyer, Carla. “Valley of hell; Tommy Lee Jones travels a long road to truth in trying to find his missing soldier son” Sacramento bee (Sep 21, 2007), Ticket, p, TK17. Meyer, Norma. “In ‘Elah,’ war’s casualties are found beyond the battlefields” San Diego union-tribune (Sep 21, 2007), Lifestyle, E-2. Miller, Tim. “‘Valley of Elah’ hits peak of artistry” Cape Cod times [Hyannis, MA] (Sep 21, 2007), p. ? Monetti, Sandro. “Hollywood’s political animal; Review/film – Renowned director and writer Paul Haggis has trained his sights on one of the world’s most political hot potatoes – the war in Iraq. His ‘enemies’ have heaped criticism upon him, but Sandro Monetti in Los Angeles found that Haggis doesn’t let go easily” Sunday express (Sep 30, 2007), Features, p. 71. Moore, Roger. “Paul Haggis’ movies ponder the imponderable: the writer-director of difficult movies, such as ‘In the Valley of Elah,’ asks hard questions” Orlando sentinel (Sep 25, 1977), Good living, p. E11. ______. “Tommy Lee Jones is brilliant as black-and-white fades to gray” Orlando sentinel (Sep 21, 2007), Calendar, p. 7. Morgenstern, Joe. [In the Valley of Elah] Wall Street journal (Sep 14, 2007), p. W6. Morris, Wesley. “After ‘Crash,’ director explores Iraq war’s emotional wreckage” Boston globe (Sep 14, 2007), LivingArts, p. 1D. ______and Burr, Ty. “The war comes home – Iraq and terrorism figure on screen – but so do bees, Beetles, and multiple Bob Dylans” Boston globe (Sep 9, 2007), Living arts, p. N25. Mottram, James. “In the Valley of Elah” Film review no. 690 (Dec 2007), p. 57. Neman, Daniel. “Deep ‘Valley’; Jones turns in a powerful, nuanced performance” Richmond times-dispatch (Sep 21, 2007), Flair, p. C-1. Newman, Bruce. “A moral mystery; A father investigates the murder of his soldier son and uncovers uncomfortable truths about the war he was fighting” San Jose mercury news [CA] (Sep 21, 2007), Arts & entertainment, p. 1C. Nott, Robert. “A question of duty” Santa Fe New Mexican (Sep 28, 2007), Pasatiempo, p. PA-70. O’Connor, Clint. “Jones is deepest part of ‘Valley of Elah’” Plain dealer [Cleveland, OH] (Sep 21, 2007), Friday!, p. T08. Ordona, Michael. “Focus: the war; fall sneaks; This time, Hollywood offers real-time analysis” Los Angeles times (Sep 9, 2007), Sunday calendar, p. E28. O’Sullivan, Charlotte. “Hollywood goes to war; Glossy, gritty, topical, liberal and stuffed with stars a new breed of political movie is invading cinema” Evening standard [London] (Oct 25, 2007), A, p. 41. O’Sullivan, Eleanor. “Man on a mission” Asbury Park press [NJ] (Sep 21, 2007), Movies, p. ? Outhier, Craig. “Review; In the shadow of disillusion; Paul haggis explores the effect of the Iraq war on the families of soldiers” Orange County register [CA] (Sep 21, 2007), Show, p. Movies 4M. Parker, Phil. “Jones’ finest performance ever” Albuquerque tribune (Sep 21, 2007), Flicks, p. C4. Persall, Steve. “Ideals erode in ‘Elah’” St. Petersburg times [FL] (Sep 20, 2007), Weekend, p. 6W. ______. “War stories get a new script” St. Petersburg times [FL] (Sep 28, 2007), Floridian, p. 1E. Pevere, Geoff. “Iraq prompts volley of films; Film festival shows that ongoing conflict is rich fodder for filmmakers” The Toronto star (Sep 16, 2007), Entertainment, p. E04. ______. “Voice for the forgotten; Canadian-born Haggis anxious to let Iraq War veterans share their stories with film” The Toronto star (Sep 11, 2007), Entertainment, p. L04. Phillips, Michael. “In ‘Elah,’ Jones channels the pain of a soldier’s parent” Chicago tribune (Sep 14, 2007), Movies, p. 1. Piccalo, Gina. “Movies; From combat-ready to ready on the set; ‘Elah’ director Paul Haggis casts Iraq war veterans. ‘They knew what they were talking about,’ he says” Los Angeles times (Sep 14, 2007), Calendar, p. E1. Pickle, Betsy. “Well-crafted war movie avoids politics” Knoxville news sentinel (Seo 21, 2007), Preview, p. 98. Pinkerton, James P. “It sure seems like 1971 all over again” Newsday (Sep 13, 2007), p. A39. Puig, Claudia. “ ‘In the Valley of Elah’ is wrenching, timely” USA today (Sep 14, 2007), Life, p. 5E. Rainer, Peter. “War hits home in ‘Valley of Elah’” Christian Science monitor (Sep 14, 2007), Weekend, p. 11. Rechtshaffen, Michael. “In the Valley of Elah” Hollywood reporter [International ed.] 400/49 (Aug 31, 2007), p. 11-24. Reynolds, Vicki S. “‘Elah’ wraps political message in murder mystery” Lincoln journal star [NE] (Sep 21, 2007), X, p. 5. Rickey, Carrie. “Father’s search personalizes war” Philadelphia inquirer (Sep 21, 2007), Weekend, p. W4, W11. ______. “A new script for war movies; As fighting rages on, Hollywood campaign breaks with tradition” Philadelphia inquirer (Oct 7, 2007), p. A01. Rodriguez, Rene. “In the Valley of Elah: Strong performance cloaks the heavy- handed message” Miami herald (Sep 21, 2007), p. G13. Schmelzer, Randi. “Iraq-war themed movies push politics” PR week (Sep 10, 2007), p. 4. Scott, A. O. “Movie review, ‘In the Valley of Elah’; Seeking clues to a son’s death and a war’s meaning” New York times (Sep 14, 2007), sec. E, p. 1. Scott, Mike. “The art of war films; Four years after the Iraq war began, Hollywood is turning its attention to that desert battlefield” Times-picayune [New Orleans, LA] (Sep 29, 2007), Living, p. 1. ______. “Down in the valley; ‘In the Valley of Elah’ reminds us that the hell of war doesn’t stop on the battlefield” Times-picayune [New Orleans, LA] (Sep 21, 2007), Lagniappe, p. 10. Serba, John. “Emotional ‘Valley’ draws in audience; But director hammers ‘war is hell’ theme” Grand Rapids press (Sep 21, 2007), Your life, p. E5. Shaw, Jessica (see under Lee, Young) Simon, Jeff. “The war comes come; A Vietnam vet deals with the truth of his son’s death after a tour of duty in Iraq” Buffalo news (Sep 20, 2007), Lifestyles, p. C1. Slotek, Jim. “Haggis hits home with Elah; Iraq war-themed film touchy and touching” The Toronto sun (Sep 15, 2007), Entertainment, p. 54. ______. “In the Valley of Elah fails to reach peak; Anti-Iraq war flick flawed, but Tommy Lee Jones is superb” The Toronto sun (Sep 21, 2007), Entertainment, p. E4. Smith, Michael. “A righteous cause” Tulsa world (Sep 21, 2007), Entertainment, p. ES4. Smith, Stephanie. “The Iraq War at home” Women’s wear daily (Sep 14, 2007), p. 12. Snyder, Steven. “In the ‘valley’ of tears” The desert sun [Palm Springs, CA] (Sep 20, 2007), Desert post weekly, p. P22. Soergel, Matt. “Man on a mission; A strong performance by Tommy lee Jones helps us get beyond the film’s obvious message and sputtering plot” Florida times- union [Jacksonville, FL] (Sep 21, 2007), p. WE-5. Sragow, Michael. “A peak at ‘Valley’ shows a lot of low points” Los Angeles times (Sep 19, 2007), p. ? ______. “‘Valley’ low; Promising performances can’t rescue ‘Elah’ from director Paul Haggis’ heavy hand” The sun [Baltimore, MD] (Sep 21, 2007), Today, p. 1C. Stevens, Dana. “In the Valley of Elah” Slate magazine (Sep 14, 2007) Straus, Tamara. “Looking for son, finding war’s hell” San Francisco chronicle (Sep 14, 2007), Datebook, p. E1. Strauss, Bob. “An epic battle for a small film; To make ‘Elah,’ Haggis faced nation’s Goliath pro-war mood” Daily news of Los Angeles (Sep 9, 2007), La.com, p. L13. Stuart, Jan. “In the valley of death” Newsday (Sep 14, 2007), Pt. II/Weekend, p. B12. Suderman, Peter. “Down on The Valley” National review online (Sep 14, 2007) Thomas, Rob. “Oscar-worthy ‘Valley of Elah’ moving, entertaining” Wisconsin state journal [Madison, WI] (Sep 20, 2007), Rhythm, p. 4. Thompson, Gary. “In anti-war saga, Army vet searches for son” Philadelphia daily news (Sep 21, 2007), p. 38. Toppman, Lawrence. “Iraq drama ‘Valley’ needs more peaks; The peripheral elements stay interesting, but the central mystery remains a washout” Charlotte observer [NC07), E+T, p. 5H. Torrance, Kelly Jane. “Where are the heroes?” Washington times (Sep 14, 2007), Show; Movies, p. D04. Toto, Christian. “Audiences reject Iraq War – at the box office” Washington times (Oct 25, 2007), p. A01. Toumarkine, Doris. “In the Valley of Elah” Film journal international 110/10 (oct 2007), p. 52-3. Turan, Kenneth. “Movie review; Somber look at the effects of war on family; An AWOL son, a father on the hunt. ‘Valley of Elah’ tells an important story – but very slowly” Los Angeles times (Sep 14, 2007), Calendar, p. E27. Vadeboncoeur, Joan E. “Tommy Lee Jones soars in ‘Valley’” Post-standard [Syracuse, NY] (Sep 225, 2007), CNY, p. E4. Vancheri, Barbara. “Coming home; Paul Haggis tells the stories of shell-shocked soldiers in ‘Elah’” Pittsburgh post-gazette (Sep 20, 2007), Arts & entertainment, p. W20. ______. “A different sort of battle wages in ‘Elah’” Pittsburgh post- gazette (Sep 21, 2007), Arts & entertainment, p. C-1. Verniere, James. “Movie review; Emotions in line of fire in grimly powerful ‘Elah’” Boston herald (Sep 14, 2007), p. ? Vice, Jeff. “‘Elah’ involving film about Iraq” The Deseret news [Salk Lake City, UT] (Sep 21, 2007), Weekend, p. W03. Villarreal, Phil. “Don’t mess with Tommy Lee Jones” Arizona daily star [Tucson, AZ] (Sep 20, 2007), Caliente, p. F17. Vognar, Chris. “Absent without answers; Movie review: Tommy Lee Jones says little but conveys much as a father searching for his soldier son” Dallas morning news (Sep 21, 2007), GuideLive, p. 1E. Weir, William. “Iraq via Hollywood; Is it too soon to be turning Baghdad into a movie?” Hartford courant (Sep 21, 2007), Life, p. D1. Westbrook, Bruce. “Drama; Solving a son’s murder reveals military secrets” Houston chronicle (Sep 21, 2007), Star, p. 3. Whipp, Glenn. “No great heights reached in ‘Valley of Elah’” Daily news of Los Angeles (Sep 14, 2007), LA.com, p. L15. Whitty, Stephen. “Actors in peak form in ‘Valley of Elah’; Reviews” Star-ledger [Newark, NJ] (Sep 14, 2007), Ticket, p. 35. Williams, Joe. “True story of ‘Elah’ begins in St. Charles County” St. Louis post- dispatch (Sep 21, 2007), Screens, p. E1. ______. “War comes home” St. Louis post-dispatch (Sep 21, 2007), Screens, p. E1. Woollard, Rob. “Hollywood war cry” Herald sun [Australia] (Sep 3, 2007), p. 95.

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