Harsh Times
by David Ayer
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Actor: Chaka Forman, Christian Bale, Eva Longoria, Freddy Rodríguez, Tammy TrullDirector: David Ayer
Brand: Genius
Producer: Christian Bale
Producer: David Ayer
Writer: David Ayer
Producer: Andrea Sperling
Producer: David Gorton
Producer: Jesse Felsot
Producer: Josef Lieck
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 5.1; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.66:1
Running Time: 116 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2007-03-13
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Model: 79955
Studio: Weinstein Company
Product features:
- (Action) Bale stars as an ex-Army Ranger who finds himself slipping back into his old life of petty crime and booze after a job offer from the LAPD evaporates. Honorable discharged, Homeland Security wants to recruit him for some special ops in Central America, but first he has to pass a urine test.which proves difficult. Film directorial debut for Ayer who has written such box office hits as TRA
DVD Reviews of Harsh Times
DVD Review: Thought-provoking and evocative more than likable
Summary: 3 Stars
The Mrs. and I have just moved into our first house together. "So what?" you might counter. Okay, fair enough. I'll get to the point. The only reason I even bring it up is because we've had to change our movie rental affiliations. We used to be regular and frequent customer of Hollywood video because the last 2 places we lived were a short walk away from the local affiliate. But not long ago we found out it was more economically practical to use Netflix (no late fees and lots of movies at a fixed monthly rate). Now, we live a short walking distance from a Blockbuster store, where we can now use the gift cards which have been languishing and accumulating following the last couple of Christmas seasons that our residential proximity has until recently favored Hollywood Video.
So what in the hell does this have to do with the movie HARSH TIMES? I'm not entirely sure I like the tone you're using, but it's a fair question. We rented this movie and several others as a means of circumventing the waiting time it would take us to get them on Netflix. Why this film in particular? Because Christian Bale tends to pick interesting projects and does a pretty good job in them, so we figured it might be worth a look.
Bale stars as Jim Davis, a U.S. Army soldier returning to inner-city Los Angeles from combat in the war on terror (more likely in Afghanistan than Iraq, based on the flashback sequence). He has 3 major goals on his return to the States: join the L.A.P.D., marry his Mexican sweetheart (who is actually from and still in Mexico), and get into trouble with all his "homies". For reasons that will soon become apparent to the audience, his application is rejected by the L.A.P.D. in spite of his otherwise outstanding credentials. This is an unfortunate catalyst for several reasons. Not only does it complicate his goals and ignite his frustration and embitterment, but also because Jim is not the kind of guy who should remain idle for significant periods of time, lest his darker/more unstable side should take a more influential role in guiding his actions.
Although Jim was supposedly an exceptional soldier in an elite unit, his personal characteristics seem to belie a personality that wavers between engaging in sporadic mayhem and even towards self-destructive decision-making. His best friend Mike (Freddy Rodriguez) is a loyal buddy and might even be a good guy in some ways, although he also shares Jim's proclivity for irresponsible behavior and often lacks or fails to demonstrate a grown-up sense of propriety. These two borderline ne'er-do-wells spend their days getting wasted - and in Mike's case - blowing off job searching and leaving phony messages about job interviews, for the benefit of his finitely patient wife (Eva Longoria).
Just as it seems Jim's life might irrevocably tumble down a spiraling path of chaos and nihilism, a remarkably fortuitous opportunity for Jim presents itself. But in order for this to work out, Jim would have to overcome the impulse-driven behavior that seems to be a firmly ingrained facet, and his time is quickly running out with no change in sight. Although you won't like Jim, you still hope that he will finally clean up his act.
I thought Bale did a really good job of defining the character and portraying him believably, using his talent for combining understated performances with high octane bursts of furious energy, all with effective timing. Although, I did have some reservations about his character's believability. In my military experience (which includes 3 years in the Special Operations command), Jim's more disturbing character traits would not have been compatible with success in the Army Rangers. Though the SEALs and Delta Force may have a little of an air or reputation for roguishness, the Ranger community is a more strictly orthodox environment of formality which expects not only remarkable soldiering abilities like the other elite military units, but one that also demands outstanding bearing and conduct and appearance at all times. Even if he is exceptionally brave and tough and competent, I just don't see a guy with Jim's background and obvious character lapses making it long enough to earn his Ranger tab. I'm not saying it could never happen, but it is highly unlikely and difficult to believe.
Another thing that the film left me with was a thought about a guy I knew in the service. In some ways, he reminded me a little of the Jim Davis character (including a mild physical resemblance). They were both gung ho, strong, tough, charismatic, and had other positive attributes which helped others overlook - but sometimes were in jeopardy of being undermined by - some substantial emotional/mental issues. Another parallel between them was that one had an incident which took his career down a path where it eventually stalled just as it looked like he was really going places, while the other got a second chance at professional redemption; conversely, one of them ended up with a decent life otherwise, while the other did not.
Description of Harsh Times
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