The War
by Jon Avnet
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Elijah Wood, Kevin Costner, LaToya Chisholm, Lexi Randall, Mare WinninghamDirector: Jon Avnet
Brand: Universal
Producer: Jon Avnet
Producer: Deborah Love
Producer: Eric Eisner
Producer: Jordan Kerner
Producer: Kathy McWorter
Writer: Kathy McWorter
Producer: Lisa Lindstrom
DVD: 2 Layers, Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; English (Subtitled)
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen, 1.85:1
Running Time: 126 minutes
DVD Release Date: 1999-04-13
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Universal Studios
Movie Reviews of The War
Movie Review: Great movie for mature audiences
Summary: 5 Stars
Kevin Costner plays a war veteran who has returned to civilian life. He is having a difficult time adjusting after the horrors of war. Such experiences are later recounted in the film. As the title suggests, the war is a key factor in the lives of the people in the film. But the title also serves as a metaphor for the war that becomes part of the lives of the people at home in their everyday struggles.
Kevin Costner and Elijah Wood's characters are part of a poor family whose interactions with a neighboring family are tenuous and disintegrating. The young daughter sees the institutionalized racism her friends have to deal with on a daily basis. The types of issues that they all deal with are the ones that would leave many of us with gut wrenching dilemmas. Lashing out and confronting some of the situations would mean overstepping bounds and in some cases engaging in violence. The failure to do so would result in defenselessness and in some cases danger.
The family learns examples from the war veteran who will spend his life wondering whether he made the right decisions in the war and from his refusal to place his personal safety above his sense of duty to those around him because of it.
This film is well acted and features beautiful cinematography. The HD release is stunning both with respect to clarity and artistry.
Others have commented that this may not be appropriate for children because of the violence and difficult themes. My children range in age from 11 to 16, and I did not find that to be an issue. However, they were bored to lukewarm at best when watching it. This may be one to watch without the kids before you decide whether it's right for them.
Summary of The War
It was a different time.and a different pace. Elijah Wood and Kevin Costner star in a rich feast for the senses from the director of Fried Green Tomatoes. This heartwarming film tells the tale of a close-knit family and their remarkable Mississippi summer of 1970.With the help of their friends, Stu (Wood) and Lidia Simmons (Lexi Randall) are determined to build the ultimate treehouse, a place of wonder and magic. Their father Stephen (Costner), a newly returned Vietnam vet, has equally high hopes to rebuild his life and fulfill his family's dreams.
Co-starring Mare Winningham, The War will captivate all who fall under its spell. It's a film rich with humor, nostalgia and mesmerizing performances. It is, in the words of the National News Syndicate, "a must-see movie."
Kevin Costner is the big name here, but the film belongs squarely to Elijah Wood, who plays his son. The film deals with the children of a Vietnam veteran in 1970 Mississippi; as their dad (Costner) tries to cope with posttraumatic stress disorder after serving in the war, the kids build a mammoth tree house in the woods--then must defend it against the local white-trash bullies. The film includes a particularly harrowing contest involving a swim across the reservoir of a decrepit water tower; still, director Jon Avnet can't avoid a certain "can't we all just get along" didactic message. That doesn't put a damper on the youthfully natural quality of the child actors, and Costner is actually quite winning as a sensitive, troubled soul. --Marshall Fine
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