Jacknife

Jacknife (1989) is a quiet drama about two Vietnam veterans you can watch online on iFILM, led by Robert De Niro, Ed Harris and Kathy Baker.

Megs shows up unannounced at the home of his old army buddy Dave on the anniversary of the friend they lost overseas. Dave drinks too much and rarely leaves the house he shares with his unmarried sister, Martha. Megs drags him out fishing like the old days — and falls for Martha along the way. Dave can't bear it. Someone else's happiness pries open everything the two men buried after the firefight they walked away from and their third friend didn't.

Director David Hugh Jones builds a chamber piece from Stephen Metcalfe's play Strange Snow: barely any plot, the whole thing riding on faces and silences. De Niro plays against type here — no action hero, just a man drowning his guilt in loud kindness. A small, overlooked picture for anyone who loves an actor's drama with no gunfire. Stream Jacknife (1989) online on iFILM.