Mystic River
Cast
Sean Penn .... Jimmy Markum
Tim Robbins .... Dave Boyle
Kevin Bacon .... Sean Devine
Laurence Fishburne .... Whitey Powers
Marcia Gay Harden .... Celeste Boyle
Directed by
Clint Eastwood
Rater #2 has description and review.
Rater #1
Has Not Seen Movie
Rater #2
8/10. In many ways, I didn't want to like Mystic River. I'm always wary
when movies receive universal praise, and, although I wanted to see
it, I actually hoped that I would be going against everyone. That
wasn't the case (although it was with Blood Work, Clint Eastwood's
previous movie: I loved it while everyone else didn't) here: I loved
it as much as the next critic. I say this often, but Mystic River
deserves acting Oscars. Eastwood's one fatal mistake was to not
release this movie in December, when people would remember its
acting. Now it will be lucky if it gets one nomination for acting.
One day, three friends are playing in a street when one is abducted.
He escapes four days later. Twenty five years later, all three
friends are reunited. Jimmy's (Sean Penn) daughter Katie (Emmy
Rossum) is murdered. Dave (Tim Robbins), who was the abducted child,
who still lives in the town, becomes closer to Jimmy, and Sean (Kevin
Bacon) is a cop investigating the case. It's more than just a murder
mystery, it's a deep character study into the lives of three broken
men.
If you walk out of Mystic River hating the movie, you cannot deny
that it had a cast whose acting prowess alone was worthy, and the
performances the actors put in make the movie one of the best with
the ensemble of actors. Each actor puts out an outstanding job, each
better than the next. If I had to pick one person who did the best
job, I would have to pick Robbins. His performance was so powerful
and believable as a broken man. Next would have to be Laurence
Fishburne as a police officer, maybe because I'm glad to see him in
something other than The Matrix; he deserves better than that.
Mystic River is one of those movies that are hard to put into words
without sounding clich�d, but I'll attempt to anyway. I could call it
powerful, which it is, but everyone else has said that because they
too are at a loss of words. It's really an experience you have to see
to understand. The mystery of the whole movie (who the murderer was)
was done very well; I'm not sure who contributed to it more, Eastwood
or screenwriter Brian Helgeland, but it was seemed that every person
in the town could have committed the murder. That's a pretty good
trick.
There are four things that really made this remarkable movie a little
less. First was how much Robbins and Penn looked alike (to me), so it
was hard to tell them apart. Many characters were underdeveloped,
such as the Savage brothers, and since they were crucial to the plot,
it didn't really work. It seems like there were a few scenes taken
out, especially about the Mystic River, which is only referred to
once or twice. Maybe there's more references in the book. Lastly, and
most importantly, when the killer was revealed at the end, it was
done in such a nonchalant way it doesn't sink in and have the impact
it should. If you can overlook those few things, then chances are
you'll love Mystic River.
Rater #3
Has Not Seen Movie.
Rater #4
Has Not Seen Movie.
Rated R for language and violence
Running time: 137 minutes
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