You have to hit rock-bottom before you can recover

Rating: 8/10 (3 June 2008)

Ben Affleck, here directing (!), has bottomed out for a five year stretch on the other side of the camera since starring in 2003's notorious Gigli. There followed a half dozen films you'll not care to remember, wiping out all that good will he generated with Good Will Hunting. It's been easy to forget that Affleck has talent (even an Oscar) ... he just cannot choose projects.
Now, as director, he's making back some ground. He's returned to surer background too  his hometown of Boston and a fractious suburban milieu. This is the setting for a morality plagued mystery-thriller, based on the novel by Dennis Lehane (of Mystic River), but Affleck shows surprising control of sentimentality and builds suspense well. Perhaps not so surprisingly, he works well with his cast - of mostly excellent character actors - to illicit drama that is convincing and persuasive.
That said, if Affleck sits with you on the couch at home, best not let him choose a DVD ... or even hold the TV remote.