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Director David Cronenberg describes his latest movie release as an "intimate, nasty, brutish and quick" piece of work. It may be exactly that, but I wish someone would have told me this before I ventured into the world of small-town families with links to the mob.

'A History Of Violence' sees Viggo Mortensen shed his cloak and sword of the 'Rings' trilogy and step into the shoes of Tom Stall — your typical family man who prides himself on his small-town diner and his perfect family.

But everything changes when one night he is forced to defend his business and customers against a ruthless gang, gruesomely killing them all.

Then Carl Fogarty, played by Ed Harris, makes an unwelcome visit to Stall and accuses him of being a mobster and the one responsible for his "Captain Hook" eye. From that moment on, the audience is kept in suspense — is Stall really as innocent a victim as he makes out to be, or does he really have a dark side?

The movie dwells in equal measure in both possibilities, so that it's only towards the very end of the film that the answer becomes clear. Alternating between quiet, staid scenes of domestic normality and scenes of horrific and bloody violence, the film is a roller-coaster ride that leaves you unsteady on your feet but not exactly sure what to make of it.

There are some really graphic sex scenes between Mortensen and Bello in this movie, which could leave you somewhat uncomfortable — think Sharon Stone and Michael Douglas in 'Basic Instinct', but without the ice pick.

The violence is not of the subtle kind either — it's a mix of Tarantino gore with Cronenberg's taste for "venereal horror" — definitely not for the squeamish.

Mortensen gives an average performance as Stall, but one gets the feeling that he's not taking the role seriously enough — there's no sign of character growth or sentiment, so it's difficult to feel anything for him. Maybe this can be faulted to the script, which leaves many questions unanswered, or direction that is too loose.

It's veteran actor Harris that keeps this film from becoming completely dismembered. He plays his character with such vile and loathsome relish that you're left trembling in your boots.

William Hurt is ridiculous as Stall's megalomaniac brother Ritchie Cusack. Despite having to play a serious character, Hurt comes across a comic — a portrayal that is wholly out of place with the tone of the movie, taking the violence too far so that it's almost, unintentionally, laughable.

Too many unanswered questions, a thin plot and below average characters makes this little more than a slice-of-life movie that has been "spiced up" by gratuitous violence. Watch it at your own risk.