The family that slays together

Rating: 6/10 (14 January 2004)

I won't waste much space on this. Seems like everything Clint Eastwood chooses to do turns out dull and routine. Mystic River looks like a TV movie that got bumped up to theatrical release (as was Mulholland Drive, but that's a masterpiece). Boston is a handsome city, but here it looks gray and depressing--does the sun never shine there?
Sean Penn, now acting like James Dean, now like Robert De Niro, doesn't do a good job. Kevin Bacon, partnered with Lawrence Fishburne, provides all the interest: although you wonder if they are EVER going to crack this case. Tom Guiry as the Romeo in this star-crossed tale is promising.