Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

One of those movie experiences that is so good it makes you realize you've been grading everything else on a curve.

Unlike many films based around the Iraqi War, In the Valley of Elah is not really a political-based movie at all and is more of a thorough murder mystery. If one doesn't pay enough attention, people may view the film as pacifist or anti-military. But on a closer look, this film is a fascinating study on the human condition of soldiers as they return to the homefront after a brutal war. In that aspect, this film is emotional as any and perhaps this will bring light to everyone's eyes. As the film itself, it is incredibly well-made and the acting is fantastic starting with the ever-great Tommy Lee Jones.Paul Haggis, the director known for 2005's Best Picture Winner Crash, directs a film about a Vietnam veteran named Hank Greenfield who finds out his son has returned from overseas, but has not been home yet. When Hank goes out to search for his son, he uncovers something much more than he had bargained for.The acting is excellent. The film plays to the strength of Tommy Lee Jones's personality. A grumpy man who rarely smiles and as always, Jones blasts his performance out of the water. Charlize Theron does a good job as the cop who is working alongside Jones. Susan Sarandon is great as the grieving wife of Jones. We also have some good cameos by James Franco and Josh Brolin.Overall, In the Valley of Elah is a smart, well-scripted drama/mystery film. It may seen anti-war at first, but it's just a study on the psychological mess soldiers suffer. It's not propaganda, it's just the truth. I understood what Haggis was trying to say, unlike many people who take the message out of proportion. It's very powerful and it will pack a heavy punch with your emotions, so be prepared. It's not for light-viewing, but it uses a powerful story to deliver the message. I rate this film 10/10.

That's there is to it. The story, despite putting the tag of being based of true events, really puts too much weight on the dramatization and the flow of the storytelling. It really contains the classic ingredients for a detective movie, the mysterious disappearance, the eventually body found, the different suspects and motives, the leads that instead send the main characters off track, and the classic moment when main characters just find out the truth, the perpetrators, who have been there all along, just admit the crime. These things thus do not really add anything to the movie's offering. The mood also doesn't differ from what we see in The General's Daughter (1999) or A Few Good Men (1992). The acting overall s quite nice. Tommy Lee Jones seems like he never acted any other kind of character besides the often calm yet hard-boiled senior. Charlize Theron made her role here rise from an undermined woman to someone the investigation depends upon.

The film has the core qualities of a good movie: Good story/plot, good actors and acting, nice directing/shooting of the story etc. - Yet what unfortunately slowly kills the overall enjoyment of the otherwise good movie is the Extremely Slow Pace, by which you have to be very, very patient in general to not let this bother you. It simply drags down the movie by taking So Much Time to move the story along.While I do appreciate the gradual and patient character development, as well as the mature and slow unfolding of the story - allowing for a greater appreciation of the actual feelings and considerations of the characters - I do feel that the director Paul Haggis has slowed it Too much down unfortunately - for me anyway. But if you do like crime and mystery stories in general, it's not a bad movie, just very slow paced.

This movie is SO boring! The plot has some intense moments, but mostly just long awkward silences with the actors staring at each other with blank stares or doing the thousand yard stare off into the distance. The score for this film is like 4 keys on a piano played at a snails pace. Ding.... bomm.....ding.... bomm..... If I hadn't drank a cup of coffee I would have fallen asleep watching this movie. This movie really is 2 hours of long pointless periods of emptiness, interspersed with slow conversations. I can appreciate a pause for effect as you reveal another revelation in the plot, but this is too much. They walk into a restaurant, pause as the camera pans for 60 seconds. They walk out into the parking lot and sit in the car. Stare off into the distance for 30 seconds. There's nothing to digest, no plot development, just them sitting there.... not talking... The pace was so slow it was actually annoying. Unless you have nothing better to do with your time, and you've already watched every other movie, you should pass on this one.