The Slender Thread

Rating: 9/10 (7 December 2006)

I've always reacted against the ugliness of war. The politicians who send others to fight for them, sitting back, pontificating about the justice of battle. This is a slice of life story where two people are victims of forces they can only hope to avoid. Having read the book and knowing how it ended (no spoilers here), I sat back and watched what went on, seeing how certain figures were presented. Renee Zelwigger as Ruby, of course, dominates every scene she is in. She takes it all on. She is equipped to survive where others are not. I would like to find out if there really were groups of raiders who sought out deserters. I sometimes wonder if people knew half the time who was actually in a battalion, let alone sending out warrants on them. Were people pursued like Jude Law was? I need to find a Civil War scholar. The movie is episodic, like a modern day Odyssey. Every obstacle just leads to a more overwhelming one. Was there no kindness? Were all betrayers? Anyway, I felt a great sense of having been in a fight at the conclusion of this film. See it for its intensity and its life. Some of the acting is a bit wooden, but the course is rough and the way hard. That's what the film is all about.