best film of 2003 (spoilers possible)

Rating: 9/10 (12 July 2004)

There are some films that come along every year that change the way that cinema is seen. For the five pictures nominated for Best Picture in 2003, there was one that stood out to me as clearly the best. It was Clint Eastwood's film about the Dennis Lehane novel which shows working class Boston at it's dirtiest. Mystic River secured nominations for Best Actor (Sean Penn), Best Supporting Actor (Tim Robbins), Best Supporting Actress (Marcia Gay Harden), Best Director (Eastwood), and Best Picture. The film is about three childhood friends: Jimmy Markum (Penn), Dave Boyle (Robbins), and Sean Devine (Kevin Bacon) who were friends during childhood until Dave was abducted by pedophiles. The three go their separate ways: Jimmy becomes a criminal who, after released from prison, goes straight and runs a store and has a wife Annabeth (Laura Linney) and two daughters along with Katie (Emmy Rossum). Dave married Celeste (Harden) and they have a son but Dave still carries the tortured seal of his past. Sean is a detective who's wife has left with his infant daughter. The story picks up pace when Katie is murdered and Dave becomes the main suspect. For fans of Penn and Robbins, this film was a real treat. If people still feel that one or the other shouldn't have won the Oscar just look at specific scenes. Penn, for example, is at his best when he finds his daughter is killed in the zoo and he has to be held back. Dave, meanwhile, has one great scene with Celeste where he talks about vampires and the soul and you're almost at the point of crying. This film was the best of 2003 but's it a shame that it was released in the same year as The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. It'll forever be overshadowed.