The veteran Vietnam lieutenant Jake Neeley (Danny Glover) lives alone in a cabin in the woods and his only contact with the civilization is through the owner of a small store, Kate (Linda Hamilton), who periodically supplies his provisions. The solitary Jake helps other lonely veterans that live in the forest giving them part of his supplies and receiving wood in return. When Jake is visited by the former private of his platoon Henry R. Hocknell (David Strathairn), who has lung cancer, Henry asks him to raise his Vietnamese daughter Lenny Hocknell (Zoë Weizenbaum). The widow Henry has no family and he will be subjected to a severe treatment of cancer. The reluctant Jake says no, but Henry leaves his daughter and vanishes. Along his contact with the young girl, Jake improves his behavior until a tragedy happens.

"Missing in America" is a sad story about losses and consequences of a war in the life of the survivors. Danny Glover and the débutant Zoë Weizenbaum have great performances in this tragic film. It is very impressive also the memorial wall in Washington shown in the end of the film, with thousands of names of soldiers that died in Vietnam. Considering that this percentage is very small when comparing with the deaths of Vietnamese (see Obs.), and recalling the deaths of Americans and Iraqi in the recent invasion, I guess what would be necessary to make people live in peace in the world and stop killing each other. Each one of these names has a family that misses the loss of the beloved relative. This movie also shows that the aftermath of a war leaves deep scars even in the survivors, losers or winners. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Cicatrizes da Guerra" ("Scars of the War")

Obs: 1) "The Vietnam War cost the United States 58000 lives." (http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/modules/vietnam/index.cfm).

2) "Documents declassified by the Vietnamese government in 1995, revealed that 5.1 million people, died during the Hanoi's conflict with the United States. Four million civilians died in both the North and South. Total military casualties were put at 1.1 million and 600,000 wounded. Hanoi concealed the figures during the war to avoid demoralizing the population." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_War).

This is one of the better movies exploring the lives of Vietnam veterans still struggling with life after the war. Very timely when you think about the thousands of Iraqi vets who will be the next generation of forgotten heroes. Fantastic acting by Danny Glover and Zoe Weizenbaum (I hope we see more of her in the future). The plot is a little weak but very engaging. The running time is surprisingly short at 105 minutes. There was lots of unexplored territory in the plot (the relationship between Glover and Linda Hamilton's character, the potential search for his son) but perhaps keeping the plot simple is part of the appeal. I would have rated it higher but the ending was a big letdown. I don't mind sad endings as long as it feels like it's part of a greater message.

The Viet Nam war is still vivid in most of the men that were involved in that conflict. Some of them were scarred for life, to the point they don't want anything to do with the rest of the society, as it's the case with the people one sees in this film.

Jake, a black man living in a small piece of land in what appears to be the Pacific Northwest, keeps to himself. Whenever he needs provisions he goes to Kate's store. Jake and Kate keep their distance. When Henry, a former soldier who was in Viet Nam with Jake, arrives at the small farm, he brings his little girl, Lenny. This man, we learn, is dying of cancer and wants Jake to keep the girl with him.

Lenny, clashes with Jake from the start. She wants her dad, and it's clear that Jake is not that person. Gradually they come to respect one another. Lenny, who is a friendly girl, wants Jake to be more neighborly. When they have a picnic, some of the other veterans living nearby, come to share some of the food and conversation. Red, a man that suffered a wound to his face, is a strange individual who, when he notices Lenny is half Vietnamese, spits in her face.

Gabrielle Savage Dockterman, the director, keeps things moving in this sad tale about people that can't communicate even though they have a great deal of pain in common. Danny Glover makes a good Jake. Linda Hamilton appears as the store owner Kate, who takes an interest in Jake. Ron Perlman is seen as Red, the man still fighting a war in his own turf. Zoe Wizenbaun makes a sweet Lenny and David Strathairn shows only for a couple of pivotal scenes.