“Least Among Saints” is a good title for a movie about a returning vet who’s been to the war zone and still has nightmares. Yes, it’s about post-traumatic stress disorder, which doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun. And it isn’t. But if you will allow it, this one will get inside your skin.
Martin Papazian writes, directs and stars, as Anthony, the 30-something just-discharged civilian who spends too much time getting drunk and mooning over his ex-spouse, who’s put a restraining order on him. He parks his truck in her yard and honks his horn at 4 a.m., and she comes out in her pajamas and tells him in blunt terms to go home.
But home isn’t much. He hasn’t really moved into his rent house, because he really doesn’t want to. The boxes and the couch are still in the yard. There’s a bed, but he hasn’t used it much. A few things are in the kitchen, and a few things are in the shop in the garage. He’s depressed, and he knows it, but shrugs off the Marines’ offer of counseling or group therapy. He’s too macho for that wimpy stuff. So he blunders and stumbles around in a haze, thinking about ending it all, but life intervenes.
There’s a next-door neighbor boy, Wade (Tristan Lake Leabu) whose mom is a crackhead, and despite the fact that she’s fairly attractive, she hangs out with a loser boyfriend because he’s also her supplier. That leaves Wade pretty much on his own, which Anthony hardly notices, except when Wade comes banging on his door one night, and asks him to come running: His mom isn’t breathing.
Sure enough, Anthony gets embroiled in the family drama next door, which in one way is none of his business, but in another way it gives him something to worry about besides himself. He sees in Wade someone who, like him, has been through a lot, is a little lost and is a bit of a social misfit. And he not only develops a certain affection and concern for Wade but also begins to understand that taking care of someone who needs him can be his redemption.
Sound a little predictable and schmaltzy? Well, yes, but we still retain our rough edges while doing so. The language is not for the easily offended, and though there’s no sexuality or nudity, there are plenty of lamentable “adult situations” – some of them, regrettably, involving children.
What’s memorable about this film is the people who show a little kindness along the way, even though it isn’t their job. The nurse in the emergency room. The detective at the station house. Even the social worker (Laura San Giacomo), if you can get past her initial crustiness. Yes, little acts of kindness mean a lot. Particularly to those who feel they are drowning right now, and any kind of lifeline is something to grab and hold onto for dear life.
“Least Among Saints” is not a thriller, it doesn’t have big-name stars and it probably won’t draw huge audiences. But it’s a sad, familiar story well-told, and one we probably need to heed. For their name is LSegion.
Ronald P. Salfen is the minister at St. Stephen’s Presbyterian Church in Irving, Texas.
