The War Zone

Plot synopsis:
15-year-old Tom (Freddie Cunliffe) is upset after his family move from London to a rural house in Devon, where he misses his friends. He lives with Dad (Ray Winstone), 18-year-old sister Jessie (Lara Belmont), and Mum (Tilda Swinton), who is in the late stages of pregnancy. Tom and Jessie are close to each other and everyone helps Mum during her pregnancy.
One night, Mum goes into labour and is driven to the hospital by Dad, accompanied by Tom and Jessie. The car crashes, but nobody is injured and a baby girl is born to much joy around the family. While coming home from shopping with Mum, Tom tells her he doesn't know anybody, but she assures him that he will make friends. When they arrive home, Tom enters the house through the backdoor and something catches his attention.
Tom confronts Jessie and asks about what he saw: Dad and Jessie, naked in a bathtub together. Jessie acts as if nothing happened, but he is definite about what he witnessed. The family go out to a bar and Jessie introduces Tom to her boyfriend Nick (Colin Farrell). The three go out to a beach and engage in awkward conversation. After returning home Tom tells Jessie he suspects her and dad's behaviour has been ongoing. Jessie neither confirms or denies this causing Tom to lash out in anger.
Later on, Dad tells Mum and Tom he is going for a run. Full of suspicion and armed with a video camera, Tom follows Dad and Jessie into an old war bunker on their ocean-side property to film them. Filming through a hole in the wall he witnesses Dad raping Jessie. Tom walks off and, devastated, throws the camera into the sea.
Tom accuses Jessie of being sick because of her actions with their father. Jessie lets him burn her breast with a lighter in order to make him feel better. Later she takes Tom on a trip to London to see her friend Carol (Aisling O'Sullivan) who attempts to seduce him at Jessie's behest, but stops when she walks in on them.
One night, Tom is woken up by Mum, who tells him there is a problem with the baby and they must go to the hospital. At the hospital, Dad and Jessie go home, leaving Tom with Mum and the baby. Tom decides to tell Mum what he saw but becomes scared. Mum takes Tom to see the baby, who is bleeding. He tells Mum never to let Dad near the baby. Before she can respond, he leaves.
When Tom returns home, Dad tells him that Mum called from the hospital and told him what Tom had said to her. While Dad confronts him, Jessie begins crying. Dad asks Tom why he would lie to the family, but Tom says he is telling the truth. Dad demands to know why he said such horrible things about him. Jessie sobs at the table, while Dad shouts at and hits Tom for trying to break up the family. Dad then leaves.
Tom and Jessie lie next to each other and Jessie thanks him for standing up to Dad. Tom and Jessie enter Dad's room after he returns. He continues to deny his behaviour and claims Tom is making things up because he misses London and is unhappy, and threatens to send him into care.
While in mid-speech Tom stabs him in the stomach with a kitchen knife. Dad screams in pain on the floor, Tom and Jessie watch him dying then Tom runs from the house to go to the bunker. Jessie follows him there to comfort him silently. Tom asks what they will do now to no response then walks over and closes the door to the bunker.

Tags: murder, storytelling, sadist

Review:
The actors are in their natural appearances with not much make-up: Tilda Swinton you see her with the pregnant creased skin-folds of a tummy inelegance; the two teenagers (Lara Belmont as Jessie, Freddie Cunliffe as Tom) in their casual demeanor/slouching poses; Ray Winstone as the seemingly unsuspicious father who looks like any man of the house, full of himself and chatting incessantly (in a way, an indication of certain insecurity and self-doubt?).
With crushing results.At the beginning of the film, we're introduced to a nameless clan: a genial father (Ray Winstone), a mother exhausted from recently giving birth (Tilda Swinton), a sullen teenage boy (Freddie Cunliffe), and his strikingly beautiful older sister (Lara Belmont).
All four have recently moved from London to the remote, seaside village of Devon, leaving the two kids feeling isolated and adrift.What follows for the next hour or so is a brilliantly confusing experience--Roth presents a series of odd quirks about the family that makes the audience question what is merely eccentricity and what hints at something darker.
I think part of the "penalty" for such a horrible thing as incest and child abuse is to watch "The War Zone".The cinematography is outstanding and serves as almost a beautiful counterbalance to the main story's theme.
Tim Roth as director delivers a drama with the kind of gut-wrenching family story that happens only so often in the movies; not even Todd Field's films, however excellent, come close to The War Zone as being truly insightful into a specific dark corridor of a family slowly ripping itself apart.
Part of it is the exceptional naturalistic acting, wherein actors I've never seen before like Lara Belmont and Freddie Cunliffe are subtle in just glances and stares to one another, and when they dig deep into the tragic parts of the story they're revelatory, maybe even more so than Ray Winstone and Tilda Swinton.
You can't take your eyes off of Cunliffe.In the War Zone the family is a father, mother, son and daughter, with the mother giving birth to a newborn daughter at the opening of the film.
But what's brilliant about the story, as well as rightfully heartbreaking, is how logically the tragedy unfolds, how the secret soon comes apart and leads into some unexpected scenes (one of which involving self-abuse, the other towards the end, a more conventional but still shocking act of violence).Roth could be considered purely an actor's director, and he is one first and foremost.
But he also is able to convey a profound sense of agony if only with the choice of scenery, of this quiet and dark seaside area and the bunker by the house where the incest takes place (apparently the R-rated version omits some explicit bits, but it doesn't feel compromised and actually helps by showing little), and the shots he films linger as much on the characters as in the viewer's mind.
I have seen many powerful films in my life, but few compare to the off-beat, unsettling and totally uncompromising 'War Zone', actor turned director Tim Roth's first film.
'The War Zone' is a very hard-to-watch film because it portrays incest -- such a terrible and disgusting event going on in some families today.
'The War Zone' is a brilliant film and an incredible first effort from Tim Roth.'The War Zone' follows an isolated British family living in the lush green hills somewhere in England.
The family consists of a dad (Ray Winstone - Sexy Beast), a mum (Tilda Swinton - The Deep End), a baby (Megan Thorp), a in-her-late-teens daughter (Lara Belmont) and a in-his-younger-teens son (Freddie Cunliffe) who's perspective the film is shot from.
"The War Zone" is a special film about incest taken entirely from the perspective of the teenage son, Tom, and his sister, Jessie, giving it a quality of children versus their parents.
Probably the worst thing about Tim Roth's audacious directorial debut is its title: 'The War Zone' conjures images of something rather noisier, and less subtle, than this film about aberrant sexuality within a family unit.
Roth also gets great performances from all his cast: in what is essentially a four-hander, Tilda Swinton is good in a limited part, Ray Winstone shows (not for the first time) that he has talents beyond those required for his customary hard-man roles, but it's the young actors who are most outstanding: Freddie Cunliffe as the troubled boy who discovers dark secrets, and especially the beautiful, opaque Laura Belmont who is simply tremendous as his sexually aware, not-as-cool-as-she-seems sister.
I went to see Tim Roth's directorial debut "War Zone" to get insight into a deeply talented actor, much as that's a reason to see Sean Penn-directed movies.
"War Zone" is a cross between "Once Were Warriors," the visceral NZ movie on domestic violence, and "Wuthering Heights."It's visually stunning, painterly, as the dysfunctional family is set in almost Edward Hopper-still life isolation on the moors, surrounded only by the elements--lots of rain, sea and relentless wind--with the characters mostly silent you sure hear that howling wind instead of conversation-- with an occasional human being staring them down.While the family's close-knit physical intimacy was realized in an almost 17th century way of togetherness, I'm not sure the abuse was, as I thought most incest more pedophiliac than this.
So the universality of any message is lost, other than the lesson that family members are love-tropic and take it any way they can get it with some fine lines dividing functional from dysfunctional.If Bergman did an abuse movie, it might look like this.
The son, Tom, is unhappy and feels alienated in the new surroundings, but when he discovers a dark family secret, things become much much worse.It's an uncomfortable viewing experience at times, making it a film you don't readily recommend, but Roth's approach to the story gives out a powerful message without exploitation or sermonising.
All of the actors are incredible, Ray Winstone is a fine actor and so are the two children, the boy Tom is excellent, when he finds out what his dad is doing he is completely cold to him, what he does to him at the end of the movie is understandable.This is a very gritty film quite slow as well but it needs to be I think to give a harsh account of the family.
The scene of the actual incest will be very disturbing for some, their is quite a lot of nudity in this film from most of the actors, also there is a lot of swearing ad violence too.I think this film is harrowing at first but after all things like this happen in real life and I think Tim Roth has done a great job of portraying a touchy subject to film..
Watching THE WAR ZONE Tim Roth's first - And hopefully last - movie behind the camera it's a safe bet that actor Roth won't be gaining too much acclaim as a director I have to question Roth's judgement for picking THE WAR ZONE as a directorial debut , couldn't he have done a romantic comedy instead ?
Instead of filming a story with commercial potential Roth has made a movie centered around a teenage girl being sexually abused by her father .
It should also be pointed out that one of the aspects Roth fails in as a director is the sound mix since I could hardly understand a single line of dialogue I will give Roth credit for getting the best out of the cast but since the actors are playing characters crushed by revelations of sexual abuse the performances are difficult to watch .
I read the story on the IMDb trivia page of the man who attended the Toronto Film Festival and who became almost hysterical while watching the movie and I can understand how he felt and the more I think about THE WAR ZONE the more I start to wish I had never seen this movie in the first place .
Especially notable is the work by Lara Belmont and Freddie Cunliffe, the young actors who portray the brother and sister in the film -- I would have never guessed from their performances that this was their first time out.Many viewers have been caught off-guard by this film -- it's easily one of the most gut-wrenching I've ever seen.
One woman I've talked with saw it at the Sundance Festival, without knowing anything about it beforehand, and was totally devastated by it -- but moved to such an extent that she went back to her community determined to do something positive to help survivors.A film that can touch people on such a deep level should be more widely seen -- especially when it deals with a subject as important as this one..
Portraying a family about to discover an unpleasant secret, Tim Roth's directorial debut really turns your stomach.Like many other English movies, "The War Zone" discredits what I call the "Mary Poppins" image of England: a bunch of happy-go-lucky rich people and humorous cockneys.
Only a couple days after watching No Way Home, a Tim Roth lead role flick, I happened to stumble upon The War Zone, his directorial debut.
Containing issues of jealousy, confusion, love, disgust, innocence....it goes on and on.Tim Roth's directorial debut is a great success, and when mixed with a fantastic cast, great writing, and beautiful cinematography and music, it's very hard not to be swept up while watching this thought-provoking and disturbing film.
His middle-class family, composed by his mother (Tilda Swinton), his father (Ray Winston) and his eighteen years old sister Jessie (Lara Belmont) has just moved from London to an isolated house nearby the coast.
I'm not denying the film is powerful, and well acted, particularly by Lara Belmont as Jessie, Ray Winstone and Tilda Swinton as Dad and Mum, and Freddie Cunliffe as Tom, but what's there is empty, alienating, and takes too long to bring to resolution.
Like Gary Oldman's study in family violence and alcohol abuse, 'Nil By Mouth', Tim Roth's The War Zone takes chances and doesn't pull any punches.
The film is a raw portrayal of the complex family dynamics that result from sex and sexual desire between family members.With the help of cinematographer Seamus Mc Garvey, Roth takes an art house approach to story telling, with masterfully bleak cinematography and inspired use of the camera.
The days were forever rainy and overcast which helped add to dreary life lived and suffered by Jessie (Lara Belmont) and Tom (Freddie Cunliffe)- sister and brother.Based on a novel by the writer of the screenplay, Alexander Stuart, it's built around a father (Ray Winstone) practicing incest with his daughter, Jessie; a mother (Tilda Swinson) who is totally blind to this behavior; and a son, Tom, who becomes suspicious of the father-daughter relationship.There seems to be a correlation between the opening scene and the balance of the movie where the home that the family lives in is isolated (they moved from London to a rural area), much like the lives of Tom and Jessie.
Like fellow "Britpack" member Gary Oldman, actor Tim Roth chooses a difficult and emotionally disturbing subject for his directorial debut, in this case, an adaption of Alexander Stuart's 1989 novel dealing with incest.
Keeping the film perfectly within the perspective of the children's view of events, Winstone and Swinton's characters are simply referred to throughout as Mum and Dad. We never find out their real names and that's how they are listed on the credits.Stuart and Roth were motivated by examining the emotional bonds between parents and their children and the consequences of what happens when that bond is broken.
Newcomers Freddie Cunliffe and Lara Belmont were picked from over 2,000 young hopefuls who responded to an advert placed in England's Guardian newspaper which read "young actors wanted to audition for film to be directed by Honey Bunneys favourite Pumpkin", a reference to Roth's cockney thief who appears in Tarantino's hit movie Pulp Fiction.
The War Zone is about a family who move to Devon from London, things are going well until the son discovers His sister is a victim of an incestual relationship with his father.
Not only is the is the direction brilliant but the acting is out of this world especially from Lara Belmont and as per usual from Ray Winstone.If you need cheering up then The War Zone is not for you if you just want to watch a super piece of movie making then this is the film to watch.
That is the case for Tim Roth's only directional effort with The War Zone.In the Devon countryside a family have moved from London: this family includes Tom (Freddie Cunliffe), his older sister Jessie (Lara Belmont), their dad (Ray Winstone) and pregnant mum (Tilda Swinton).
After Mum gives birth to a new daughter, Tom makes a horrible discovery when he finds out his Dad is having a sexual relationship with Jessie.Roth takes a hard-hitting approach to film and he does not flinch from the subject manner.
Belmont gave a great performance and Winstone was a great examination of a underpowered form of evil.The War Zone is very compelling film that is brilliantly acted and directed.
One of the lingering questions is whether Swinton's character knows what's going on.While Roth's direction and Alexander Stuart's screenplay are integral to the film's success, the consistently high level of acting is of paramount importance.
This minimalistic, atmospheric and unsentimental psychological drama about incest which is set during a spring on the countryside in South West England in the late 20th century, is impelled and reinforced by it's cogent narrative structure, substantial character development, subtle continuity and the understated and poignant acting performances by English actor Ray Winstone, English actress Tilda Swinton and British actress Lara Belmont and British actor Freddie Cunliffe in their debut feature film roles.
His family, consisting of 18 year old sister Jessie (Lara Belmont), Dad (Ray Winstone), and Mum (A bloated Tilda Swinton) have moved to the Devonshire countryside to live on an isolated property, leaving their London city life behind.
But special mention must be made of the actors who play the siblings, Lara Belmont and Freddie Cunliffe who had no prior acting experience but emerge winners with their effortless performances.Do not miss Tim Roth's "The War Zone".
One of the most uncomfortable, uncompromising sex scenes you are likely to see in a full length picture.I am surprised Tim Roth has still not directed another film but I would definitely be up for watching them even if the story is not as bleak as this one because the direction and casting is spot on.Overall, I recommend this to people who like this sort of film.
It is also one of the most difficult movies I've ever had the opportunity to watch.The film opens with Tom (played by Freddie Cunliffe), a teenage boy who is angry with his family for moving away from the city and into Middle of Nowhere, England.
!. According to Tim Roth a taboo as well as disturbing subject of incest has rarely been judiciously tackled by Hollywood.This is because most of Hollywood films have too much of preaching involved.So he has deliberately chosen to avoid this trap while he was making his debut film.He was also bothered about the fact that there are not so many challenging roles for children.This is the reason why young actors like Lara Belmont and Freddie Cunliffe have given bravura performances under his direction about which it can be said that they are far superior then the likes of Tilda Swinton and Ray Winstone.According to Alexander Stuart who wrote the book based on his novel,there is no solution to such an evil problem of incest as family members are forced to bear the consequences arising out of shame and guilt.In "The War Zone" much of anger is depicted through angry eyes of its talented actor Freddie Cunliffe.His portrayal of tormented boy Tom is so convincing that he will surely appear as the only innocent soul of this sordid tale who did not commit any sin..
Throughout the film,director Tim Roth lets many scenes play out in almost silence,aware that a look can say as much as five pages of dialogue.Immediately one is grabbed by the film,the tension is extraordinary as you know things are not right in the family.
Exceptional the interpretation of the young Lara Belmont (but where Tim Roth found her ?), who performs with such realism to make to experience pain to the audience for the sufferings that her character lives in the story, but all of the cast is of excellent level.
Highly talented actor Tim Roth tried his hand at directing with this irregular little film, THE WAR ZONE.
However, even if you come prepared, you might go out of this movie, feeling that weird feeling in your stomach.Tim Roth in his debut, is fine director, I would really like to see making more films.9 of 10..
I, on the other hand think that in showing things the way he did, he successfully achieved his goal of making the audience shocked at what they saw - by highlighting the dichotomy in the mind sets of the abuser and the abused - and to make the audience feel uneasy at the 'human face' worn by Ray Winstone's character.There is no question that this is a difficult movie to watch, but Roth is attacking a difficult subject.
The actors play their characters extremely well, showing the confusion, desperation and the repression of the feelings, which are slowly, and quietly tearing their family and their lives apart.There are some things Roth should work on (some of his establishment shots were too long and the overall rhythm of the film was a little slow), but on the whole this is an excellent first effort.
Tim Roth's, The War Zone is a highly disturbing film that makes you look at society today and how corrupt it really is.