SummaryIn his first leading role, Foster stars as Will Montgomery, a U.S. Army officer who has just returned home from a tour in Iraq and is assigned to the Army’s Casualty Notification service. Partnered with fellow officer Tony Stone to bear the bad news to the loved ones of fallen soldiers, Will faces the challenge of completing his mission while see... Read More
Directed By:Oren Moverman
Written By:Alessandro Camon, Oren Moverman
The Messenger
Metascore
Generally Favorable
77
User score
Generally Favorable
7.1
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
77
84% Positive
27 Reviews
27 Reviews
13% Mixed
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
3% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
100
It's a tremendously moving drama, filled with heartbreak, humor and, more importantly, humanity.
88
The best war movies don't preach against war: They remind us of the costs for soldiers and families and ask us to consider whether those costs are worth paying. The Messenger does that without firing a bullet or putting us on a battlefield.
User score
Generally Favorable
7.1
79% Positive
38 Ratings
38 Ratings
13% Mixed
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
8% Negative
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
Aug 28, 2010
9
A superb war film with not a glimpse of actual warfare in it. The performances are all utterly compelling but what makes this movie great is the way director Oren Moverman slowly builds to big dramatic payoffs. In the small pantheon of modern warfare movies this stands tall.
Aug 13, 2010
9
The Messenger is the second best Iraqi war movie of 2009, it's not as good as The Hurt Locker but still proves it's self among other war movies by being better. The best war movies I have seen that are worth to watch again and again are Black Hawk Down, Saving Private Ryan and Platoon.. They were able to capture the essence and pathos of soldiers. There are many more that I would like to see. However there are not much Iraq war movies out there, until Kathryn Bigelow directed and release The Hurt Locker which won Best Picture and Best Director. Then came along another film that people ignore and it's worth a watch. The Messenger talks about grief, loneliness, pain and the transition to coexist in the real world. Our men in uniform call home the real world while the combat zone is hell. I personally experience my cousin who's like a brother to me went to Iraq and came back injured and the terrible time our family went through. He's all right now and finish with the Army. I love movies that deeply respect soldiers and doesn't succumb them into melodramatic plots and clich?ar stories or bloody violence. I'm talking to you Pearl Harbor and Windtalkers. Ben Foster who I compare to Anthony Mackie from The Hurt Locker who should have been nominated plays Staff Sgt. Will Montgomery. He just came back from Iraq after serious injuries. He's already despising the fact of everybody calling him a hero. He already has bad luck when his girlfriend leaves him for another guy. He has three months left on his enlistment and his commanding officer orders him to join the Army's Casualty Notification service. He's reluctant but is forced to join. Here he meets Capt. Tony Stone who is he's partner and training officer. The movie is power full when they go and notify the families of the fallen soldiers. There are gut wrenching scenes which are not to be taken lightly especially if you are family who has lost loved one in Iraq. There is a scene with the great actor Steve Buscemi that completely steals the scene and one of my favorite scenes of the movie. Then they notify Kelly played very well by Jena Malone who is now a single mother because of her husband dying. Strangely Will is attracted and intrigue by her. He helps her with things around the house and visits her and eats dinner with her and her son. This is something that he can't do and angers Tony, Will who feels everybody in the world doesn't understand him Kelly is a safe haven for him. She's needy and he's needy in his own way. The movie works as well because of the chemistry Woody Harrelson and Ben Foster has. They start off not liking each other but gradually getting along. Tony feels the up most respect towards Will because of his combat experience and at the same time jealousy because of his lack of combat. Will teaches Tony that the families are human then just names on a piece of paper. I feel the flaw of the film is that it loses its focus when the romance starts with Will and Kelly. There are good scenes between them, don't get me wrong but I feel the movie loses track and doesn't head into the right direction but it does pick it self up and finish very satisfying. The movie is thought full and very respectful towards its subject. The movie has no war violence whatsoever but Will's brutal description of the events will make you shudder. A very good movie and must be seen. Note: It's funny on my senior year I was going to join the Army and I was to be sent to Fort Knox, Kentucky and my MOS was going to be Calvary Scout. I was ready to go April 23, 2005, my mom got hit by a car and I couldn't go. My pregnant wife and mom begged me not go back again. I think to myself if I would have still join where would be now? Could I be somewhere around the world, or would my wife get that two neatly dressed service men on the door? This movie made me think that way. My prayers go to all our woman and men in uniform.
85
Messengers with the worst possible message, they nonetheless manage to be human and alive, humorous and lively. In a film that itself bears such sad tidings about the costs of war, that is an affirming, even an inspiring, gift.
80
What really resonates is the complex tale of camaraderie between two men whose only hope of avoiding self-destruction is to let down their guard--which is, of course, against protocol.
75
With the insight and sensitivity of an insider, The Messenger illuminates the sometimes invisible victims of war -- the survivors -- and a pain that is tolerated but never quite healed.
63
For all the film's gritty verisimilitude, The Messenger is not the great Iraq War movie that Kathryn Bigelow's "The Hurt Locker" is.
25
The similar Kevin Bacon HBO movie "Taking Chance" got there first. Worse news: The earlier movie was sober, meticulous and quietly convincing, not a shouty, shoddy bore like this piece of flummery.
Apr 5, 2026
8
A powerful story that expertly balances romance, bromance, and a deeply moving look at the life of a veteran. The film brilliantly portrays the dark side of returning from war, showing the haunting experiences that stay with a soldier long after the fighting stops. It also captures the shared grief of families who have lost loved ones. The inclusion of dark comedy adds a unique layer to the narrative, making the emotional weight easier to handle. Overall, a great and thought-provoking experience that lingers in your mind.
Nov 22, 2021
8
This film reminded me a little of a TV film called 'Resting Place', which I very much liked. It focusses primarily on the perhaps somewhat stereotyped(?) macho masculine persona of the American army/military, in the form of Captain Tony Stone (played by Woody Harrelson. Harrelson is an actor I am generally quite keen on - his presence made me more curious to see it) having to supervise and train staff sergeant Will Montgomery (played by Ben Foster) in relaying the tragic loss of a loved one to their next of kin, in a very specific, no-frills, procedural way. Steve Buscemi is also in the cast, playing a relative of alot fighter called Dale Martin and Samantha Morton gives a solid performance as Olivia Pitterson. I also like films with a moral/ethical aspect to it, which this does have. I found some of the plot details frustrating, certainly not in terms of believability, sadly, more so in terms of what it's shining a light on. It's an understandably sobering watch, not a war based action thriller but in terms of the themes and realities depicted. I won't go into any additional level of detail, for obvious spoiler reasons. The acting is good and its certainly a thought provoking watch, so I'd recommend it on that basis.
Aug 23, 2021
8
This is one of those movies that makes us think. Not only does it address an indigestible topic – as hard to swallow as what these soldiers do – but it also makes us wonder if there really is a purpose, a reason for the sacrifice of so many young people who die in war. In fact, war is abominable, only those who have never been there are able to like it. I have never been, but my father fought in the wars that Portugal had in Africa, protecting the lives of civilians who had nothing to do with the political situation lived then. It wasn't a pretty war, but there are no pretty wars. What happened until very recently in Afghanistan and Iraq was also ugly and should have been avoided. Even so, the availability, courage and sense of duty of the young people who, when their country blows the horn, present themselves to serve their flag, is praiseworthy. But let's go to the movie. The film revolves around a soldier who, after having fought for the country, returns home to complete the last three months of military service in peace. He is then appointed to support an older officer in the difficult task of going to the homes of relatives of other military personnel to break the news of their death. There is a manual and rules to respect, such as talking only to the next of kin and never touching or feeling emotional, but it's a difficult thing to do on a mission that is so thankless: they are insulted, sometimes assaulted, and they see, firsthand, the pain of the loss of those men. When things turn out to be more difficult and exhausting than one might think, the two men try to decompress, so they don't break: they drink, listen to music too loud, pound walls, engage in ephemeral relationships... The cast has two excellent actors, who share the lead and collaborate very well together: Ben Foster and Woody Harrelson. The two actors were excellent, and it's hard to even say if one of them was better, because they both worked in a totally symbiotic way. The truth, however, is that this movie has managed to be, for me, Harrelson's best work so far (at least of all those I've seen). Another excellent actor who appears and shines in this film is Steve Buscemi, playing the father of a deceased soldier. He brings us to one of the most poignant and tense scenes in the film. I didn't like Samantha Morton very much. The actress is good, but the character is uninteresting as ephemeral. Directed by Oren Moverman, the film does not give us a definite script, but it does reveal a lot about the domestic human consequences of US wars abroad. Even if war is far away, it always affects whoever fights it, and the director was very adept at exploiting the public's sensitivity to such an issue. Technically, the film has good cinematography, good color and light, and is extremely realistic in the way it was shot and edited. It even looks like a documentary, in a sense, and that was certainly something the director wanted. Good use of backgrounds and credible costumes help to build this pleasing realism. With no annoying or raucous visuals and sound effects, the film leaves the stage free for what we're going to see, and even the soundtrack is not intrusive.
Jul 18, 2014
8
A very emotional film, The Messenger is certainly a must watch as it really manages to touch you in many ways and feels entirely heartfelt. On top of that, it sports a fantastic performance from Ben Foster, as well as Woody Harrelson. Both of them really steal the show and sweep you off you feet as you entirely believe they are both heavily damaged men dealing with their own demons. On the surface, The Messenger is a film about an injured war veteran (Foster) being assigned to casualty notification duty with a hard as nails Captain (Harrelson). However, it is truly about their relationship and themselves as individuals as they learn more about one another and the other sees what troubles them. It is a very well done character study that is entirely moving in its subject matter and the way it handles this subject matter. The Messenger feels like a small film at times, but at others, it feels entirely grand and is very well done. Now, it is not a great film, but it is undeniably a damn good one and makes for a tough watch.
Mar 19, 2011
1
The movie started out pretty good, but about 15 minutes into it, descended straight into Absurdia. I am not a military man, but it is hard for me to imagine that notification officers would act like that. In addition, what is the appeal of yet another movie showing two guys who basically cannot handle life, and opt for the bottle ? It's old, it's boring, and nature itself selects these individuals for extinction, because no woman in her right mind would stay with them. The movie got that part right. I am in no way saying that war is not horrible, and that soldiers get traumatized, But as soon as you pop that beer, you are just one of the countless losers...
Production Company:
- Oscilloscope
- Omnilab Media
- Sherazade Film Development
- BZ Entertainment
- The Mark Gordon Company
- Good Worldwide
- All the Kings Horses
- Reason Pictures
Release Date:Nov 13, 2009
Duration:1 h 53 m
Rating:R
Awards
Academy Awards, USA
• 2 Nominations
Golden Globes, USA
• 1 Nomination
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards
• 2 Wins & 4 Nominations
