SWMBO and I went to see the movie A History of Violence. I gotta admit, it was more than a little intense, and I think they went over the line with the gratuitous sex scenes (at one point, SWMBO whispered to me, “This is R-rated? I don’t even think we’re old enough to see this!”). And of course, the blood and gore all over the floor and walls is way, way overdone. Leave the kids at home when you go see this one. Seriously.
Having said that, there are some really great martial arts sequences in it, and as Taekwondo instructors, we really appreciated that. Most of the fight scenes are excellent in terms of realistic use of m.a. in self defense scenarios. Not very many punches, but lots of elbows and palm heels, and a really good gun disarming sequence. No head high kicks, and good balance and movement all the way through. Viggo Mortensen has apparently been doing some serious training and it shows.
I rated this movie a 7 on IMDB.com. I would have given it a 10 if they hadn’t gone so far overboard.