“I saw an angel...He looked just like you, only bigger.”
- from the “The War”
I recently saw the film “The War.” I didn’t really know what to expect. But I expected it would be somewhat of a tear-jerker. It was that and much more. I had heard that the film had good intentions but fell short of excellence; that apart from good dialogue it was just mildly entertaining. That turned out to be untrue. Though at times it was only mildly entertaining, it had high points that far outweighed any lull in excitment.
The premise of the movie: Kevin Costner’s character is a Vietnam veteran. He was the father of two, a 12 year old daughter and a younger son (played by Elijah Wood), and the husband a hard working woman who took on two jobs during his service in the war just so the family could be “dirt poor” like everybody else. She believed in him and would do anything to support him. After all, he was “a part” of her. Kevin’s character was having nightmares promted by a tramatic experience in the war. His friend had gotten wounded and he was doing everything he could to save him. When they reached the helicopter they told him that there was room for one more. He had to choose. Either him or his friend. After going through great pains to get them to let them both on (going as far as putting a gun to a guy’s head), he left his already wounded friend. He gave up on him when he belived inside that his friend could make it. This caused much guilt and struggle for him in the years to come. He had recieved a purple heart and a gold star for his service in the war, but he knew that none of that mattered. He had let his friend die.
After the war he started going to a mental hopsital for help. After that he was constantly struggling to find a good paying job and keep it. One thing that his father used to say that always stuck with him was that nothing you do in this lifetime will ever make a difference. This seemed to be true in his life. But he was not going to let this be true in his children’s life. He knew that if they believed they could do anything they could. And if they made a difference in the world he would have made a difference too. The war changed his life. His life now seemed to be governed by two principles: if you ain’t got love you ain’t got nothin’ and no man has greater love than a man that gives his life for a friend. His son was beginning to understand.
One of Wood’s character’s enemies, little Billy, had climbed a water tower to try to grab a key that had been left on the roof. Wood saw him and went after him. The roof was old and shaky. Billy fell through into the water which was swirling violently as it drained. Wood jumped in after him, risking his own life. After much struggle, he managed to grab Billy and lay him down on a platform inside the tower. By then the boy’s brothers and sister was there. Billy was motionless, not even breathing. But Wood would not give up. He slapped him around, and pumped his stomach and encouraged him, “You can do it! Breathe!” But the boy’s older brother said to just forget it. He was dead. But Wood did not give up, and with his sister’s help, Billy started breathing again. As he came to, he said to Wood, “I saw an angel...He looked just like you, only bigger.”
How awesome a statement! At that moment I realized the profound power of this film. The boy, nearing death, saw an angel who looked like his rescuer but bigger. Love was shown in risking one’s life for another, not for a friend, but for an enemy. He saw an angel that looked like love. He saw God. No man has bigger love than that love. He saw a love that is bigger.
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