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Calls for Charlize boycott
13/09/2007 22:46 - (SA)
Cape Town - Charlize Theron and Tommy Lee Jones' latest movie In the Valley of Elah is to open in the US on Friday amid calls from some war supporters to boycott the actors as it is believed to be "anti-US" and "defaming US soldiers".
The film, directed by Oscar-winning Crash filmmaker Paul Haggis, is based on a real 2003 case involving the stabbing death of Iraq war veteran Spc Richard Davis after he returned from battle.
Surrounding the case were allegations the victim witnessed war-time atrocities, and the convicted perpetrators suffered from extreme stress disorders that were downplayed by officials.
In the movie Tommy Lee Jones plays the role of a former military police investigator trying to find out why his son was brutally murdered, whereas Charlize Theron plays a police detective who helps in the investigation.
'Bin Laden cinema'
According to a news report on Wednesday in USA Today, conservative columnist Debbie Schlussel labelled it "Bin Laden cinema" and called for a boycott of the actors.
On her website she wrote: "the movie defames our troops as murderous, drug-addicted, prostitute-patronising thugs who torture wounded Iraqi civilians for fun and sport."
The conservative NewsMax.com also categorised the movie as an "anti-war, anti-US flick".
However, according to USA Today some military bloggers such as SgtStryker.com and PTSDcombat.blogspot.com, have praised it for highlighting issues that are front-and-centre in military communities.
Jones told US Today he was not intimidated by the criticism, saying he is "so ready for a fight he doubts there'll be much of one".
"The tactic of leading people into a war that doesn't make any sense by telling them they are under attack, and if they raise any objection they're unpatriotic, is a very old tactic. And it doesn't intimidate me," he said.
Charlize Theron was quoted earlier as saying that she hoped the US troops in Iraq could return home soon.
While promoting In The Valley of Elah at the Venice Film Festival, the Oscar-winning star told the BBC:
"Nothing would give me more joy than to see them back in America. The soldiers are doing a very, very important job and it's a dangerous one. "Hopefully they can come back and be looked after, that's the least we can do for them."
- News24
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South Africa
