Hmm, I don’t know where my review of this film went. I know I reviewed it when I saw it in the theater, but it isn’t here, so it is time to review it again after watching the DVD.

I have to say I really enjoyed this film, I honestly missed the twist the first time, falling for it big time. The performances are amazing, and totally believable. The violence is extreme but not glorified. And most incredible, which I didn’t realize the first time was just how incredibly this film is shot. Shot after shot is so well done, with driving crane shots, and very long shots that really make this film an incredible thing to watch. In fact it really makes me want to check out the graphic novel. This is certainly not your typical comic books story, and seems made to be a film. It is really too bad that Viggo Mortensen got no recognition for his part in this film, because his performance is really incredible.

REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS…

Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) is a husband and mild manner owner of a local diner in a small town, with a beautiful wife Edie (Maria Bello who gives a stunning performance) and 2 kids Jack (Ashton Holmes) and Sarah (Heidi Hayes). Things change when 2 cold blooded killers come to town and try and hold up the diner, and Tom goes into action and quickly shoots and kills both of them, and he is on the news. Quickly some Philadelphia Mobsters led by Carl Fogarty (Ed Harris) who has a score to settle show up and start called Tom Joey, and they start harassing him and his family, until they take his son, and Tom once again becomes what he was in his past, Joey, and kills the mobsters, though his son takes out Carl Fogerty. Edie confronts her husband and realizes that he is not who she married, he is a completely different person, with a serious history of violence. Joey Cusack scares Edie, though seems to excite her as well, and she seems to want him to leave, and he does for a while, because he needs to clear things up in Philadelphia, with his brother the mob boss Richie Cusack (William Hurt), who he dispatches along with his whole crew, and returns to his family to be Tom Stall once again.

Really an incredible film. Well one in every aspect, and so well executed. A pleasure to watch.