As we were scouring the web the other day, we came across a list on the Oscar-prognosticating website In Contention that ranked the top 10 actors under the age of 30. While the list was fairly solid, there was one notable omission: Ben Foster. The former child star has had a number of breakout supporting roles over the last few years in films like Alpha Dog, 3:10 To Yuma, and 30 Days of Night, and we’ve always felt that it was only a matter of time before he got cast in a leading role that would allow him to put his electric acting talent on full display. We had hopes that that movie was going to be Pandorum, but it turned out to be a heaping pile of sci-fi schlock. So instead, we turn our eyes to yet another Iraq War drama, The Messenger, a film in which he stars alongside Woody Harrelson. In it, he plays a United States military man whose job is to deliver death notices to the next of kin of fallen soldiers. Along the way, he runs into an ethical dilemma when he falls for Samantha Morton, who plays a recently widowed woman. The film looks pretty grim, but Ben Foster’s presence will guarantee that we’ll be shelling out $12 to see this movie when it opens on November 13.
First Official Trailer for Oren Moverman’s The Messenger [First Showing]
