Mystic River (A or 4/4 stars)
The Academy Awards voters should remember 'Mystic River', a heavy drama directed by legendary Clint Eastwood. The film is a 'whodunit', and yet, it is so much more. The real action starts with the murder of Jimmy's (Sean Penn) daughter, Katie. The murder reunites him in the most uncomfortable of ways with his two estranged childhood friends, Sean & Dave (Kevin Bacon, Tim Robbins). Sean is a homicide detective assigned to the case with his partner, Whitey (Laurence Fishburne). Dave, abducted & molested as a child, is a mentally unstable man who is a prime suspect of the murder.
Celeste (Marcia Gay Harden) is David's wife. She is almost sure that her husband killed Jimmy's daughter because he came home late the night of the murder with bloodstained hands. He has an excuse, but who knows if it is true. Her fear of him and her neurotic suspicions are impeccable.
Laura Linney plays Annabeth, Jimmy's second wife. She is the polar opposite of Celeste. Despite the fact that Jimmy has had shady dealings in both the past & present, she stands by her man.
The fact that Dave was abducted & molested as a child has a huge impact on the past, present and final outcome of the film. There's a very intricate back story. In fact, the back stories of all these characters are far more interesting than the actual investigation on who actually killed Jimmy's daughter. The networking of human emotions is paramount in this film.
I can see this film getting nominated for Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, Actor (Penn, and/or possibly Robbins) & Supporting Actress (Gay Harden). It's an outstanding film that had me on the edge of my seat. Superb acting, and clean, pure settings almost always win over the mass mania that has been the 'special effects' movies of late. Sure, some movies with amazing special effects can touch the human soul. But like In the Bedroom, a movie can be carried almost completely by superb acting. It must be said that I think this story is superior to that of In the Bedroom, though. I would not ever give away pertinent parts of a movie, but it must be said that there are suspects in the story other than Dave.
Celeste (Marcia Gay Harden) is David's wife. She is almost sure that her husband killed Jimmy's daughter because he came home late the night of the murder with bloodstained hands. He has an excuse, but who knows if it is true. Her fear of him and her neurotic suspicions are impeccable.
Laura Linney plays Annabeth, Jimmy's second wife. She is the polar opposite of Celeste. Despite the fact that Jimmy has had shady dealings in both the past & present, she stands by her man.
The fact that Dave was abducted & molested as a child has a huge impact on the past, present and final outcome of the film. There's a very intricate back story. In fact, the back stories of all these characters are far more interesting than the actual investigation on who actually killed Jimmy's daughter. The networking of human emotions is paramount in this film.
I can see this film getting nominated for Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, Actor (Penn, and/or possibly Robbins) & Supporting Actress (Gay Harden). It's an outstanding film that had me on the edge of my seat. Superb acting, and clean, pure settings almost always win over the mass mania that has been the 'special effects' movies of late. Sure, some movies with amazing special effects can touch the human soul. But like In the Bedroom, a movie can be carried almost completely by superb acting. It must be said that I think this story is superior to that of In the Bedroom, though. I would not ever give away pertinent parts of a movie, but it must be said that there are suspects in the story other than Dave.