Ben Affleck's Masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (18 February 2016)

What a truly great mystery. Gone Baby Gone has all the elements any good mystery story should have - misdirection, crazy twists and turns, and bloodshed (just to add to the excitement). The all-star cast especially elevates Gone Baby Gone to heights that exceed most mysteries and thrillers produced in this day and age.
The person who earned this film an Oscar nomination: Amy Ryan. Rightfully so. Appearing in supporting roles in both The Office and The Wire, Amy Ryan goes well out of her comfort zone to play a druggie coked out of her mind, conflicted emotionally over her missing child (at points she can care less, at others it is heartbreaking how she takes it). It is difficult not to marvel at Ryan's performance; she is completely believable as being psychologically disturbed which is rare from an actress who is sane in her other roles (well, at least in The Wire). It is very difficult to pull off being a convincing drug addict, and Ryan is arguably the best part of this film.
The plot is on and off at points; in the first half of the film it is easy to notice that something seems "off," but it is hard to put a finger on it, making the audience question the events as a good mystery should. The outcome of a mystery should be a surprise, but you don't want to keep the audience completely in the dark if you want the outcome to seem plausible. However, the logic of the situations in the first half of Gone Baby Gone does not add up in ways that are too obvious.
What makes up for this? Practically everything else about the film. The story eventually gets to a point where the morality of certain situations and choices is questioned by both the characters and the audience, and with good reason too. Movies are meant to be about the human condition, and when you have a film like Gone Baby Gone pose difficult questions of what is ethical, or what the greater good is in certain situations, you have an outstanding movie (and it helps when the twist of any mystery is very unexpected).
Gone Baby Gone is an overlooked work by Ben Affleck. It is his best film, but it did not get the recognition it deserved when it was released.
4.0/4.0