Critics have complained about plot holes and unbelievable behavior on the part of different characters in the film. I won't stoop to calling them idiots or saying they "didn't get it", but I will say these are people who either do not understand or do not value the symbolism of the film, who do not understand the value of what David Cronenberg has been consistently delivering throughout his career.

His movies are about introspection, he’s not telling a story about other people, he’s telling you a story about yourself. Usually a very scary story.

If you are looking for a believable story that you can convince yourself actually happened to someone somewhere; there are other films to watch. This one is for people willing to take a hard look at the darkness inside of them and analyze different ways of using that very darkness (the one we so often deny even exists) to deal with the problems that face us in every day life.

Story:

Tom Stall (Vigo Mortensen) is a mild mannered family man and father of two operating a small town diner somewhere in mid-America and living a seemingly completely normal life. After two drifters on a cross-country killing spree stop in at closing time and try to terrorize his diner, Tom goes on a rampage of his own killing both of them with seeming ease and becoming a national hero in the process.

Tom’s new-found fame brings some unwanted attention, particularly from a group of mobsters who insist Tom is really Joey Cusack, a professional killer who went missing years ago and may have significant unfinished business with his former employers.

It’s a story line that has been done probably over a thousand times in the form of cheap and not-so-cheap action movies, boasting actors ranging from Jean-Claude Van Damme to Nicholas Cage.

What’s unique about this movie is the way David Cronenberg can take a story whose elements are relatively commonplace and turn it into something dark and disturbing like this. 

The good:

Acting, scripting, special effects are all adequate or better. There are some minor continuity issues that may bother viewers wishing to take the narrative literally; it is my opinion that it was not meant to be taken literally at all.

The bad:

Well obviously I loved this movie so not much.

Conclusion:

 This movie is a one that David Cronenberg fans will obviously not want to miss, and one that others looking to familiarize themselves with his work might use to ease themselves into his style of moviemaking. I believe this is probably one of Cronenberg’s less-disturbing pieces to date.