Eastwood finally outdoes himself

Rating: 9/10 (26 October 2003)

Clint Eastwood is one of the more interesting characters in Hollywood. Few who grew up watching him as Rawhide could have imagined he would make the grim fatalistic western masterpiece "Unforgiven." And now, those who idolized Eastwood as Harry Callahan may be surprised at how he portrays gritty urban life in "Mystic River."
From the start it becomes clear that Eastwood intended for "Mystic River" to be his best movie, eclipsing even "Unforgiven." Instead of hiring himself out for the title role he got together a troupe of some of the last two decades finest actors: Penn, Fishbourne, Bacon and Robbins. And was then able to ring out of each of them, what could be the finest acting of their careers.
Remember Sean Penn in "State of Grace?" Bacon in "Stir of Echoes?" Fishbourne in "Deep Cover" and Robbins in "Jacob's Ladder?" Well imagine something even better than all these performances. As it is Bacon and Fishbourne are hit or miss actors. For every great acting they do they also release a "Hollow Man" or "Event Horizon." Their performance in "Mystic River" more than makes up for these cinematic failures.The casting in the film is spot on, as though each part were written specifically for these actors.
The script itself is worthy of merit too. Based on an equally gripping book, "Mystic River" is a compelling story told in a compelling manner. Eastwood doesn't mess around with giving you a hero or a villain. Rather the only main character is the neighborhood itself--shot on site in Boston for great, gritty realism. As the story contstantly jumps from one point of view to the next (the victim, the accused, the cops and everyone inbetween), the movie picks up pace even when it isn't going anywhere--thus throughout the films 2 plus hours there is never a dull moment.
Makeup is deserving of note in Mystic River. Especially in the case of Penn, Robbins and Marcia Gay Hayden. Although Penn is recognizable, he looks nothing like you have ever seen him before. This is not Jeff Spiccoli, it is Markham. For Robbins, the makeup artists did a masterful job of putting the weight of forty years of abuse on his cheek bones. After films like "Absolute Power" and "Blood Work" it seemed like Eastwood was more interested in making fun movies, than great ones. "Mystic River" proves that Eastwood is still an artist, and a great one at that.