By Chris Alexis

I’ll get right to the point. In the Valley of Elah offended me.

And I think it will offend most everyone who sees it.

Now, this is a movie that has a lot to do with the Iraq War. And I know what you may be thinking.

But you’d be wrong.

This has nothing to do with Republican or Democrat. Pro-Bush, anti-war.

None of that.

The theme of this movie is “all soldiers are disturbed, murdering psychos.”

Tommy Lee Jones plays Hank Deerfield, a retired member of the Military Police, whose son goes missing from the Army. Hank ends up investigating it himself, at times helping and at times clashing with the official investigation.

As we learn more about the different soldiers, we see that all of them are corrupted, disturbed and violent.

And the final image of the movie very clearly states that this isn’t an isolated incident. This is the big picture. The Armed Forces is full of violent, sick, abusive, drug-dealing monsters.

The title refers to the place where David defeated Goliath. The two squared off in the Valley of Elah.

I will say this film has some great performances. Tommy Lee Jones plays the no-nonsense Hank with a humbled gruffness and an obvious, but shielded vulnerability.

Charlize Theron plays Emily Sanders, a female detective who ends up getting deeply involved in the investigation and becomes a strong ally of Hank.

Susan Sarandon, who actually doesn’t get much screen time, still carries an emotional performance as Hank’s wife, Joan.

And despite the strong performances, the movie was ruined for me by its terrible message.

And I honestly don’t think it will sit well with the nation.

If you have certain political views and want to attack or side or the other in a film, that’s fine.
Just don’t attack the brave men and women fighting overseas.