Not Eastwoods best

Rating: 6/10 (19 December 2009)

Eastwood directs an all star cast including Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Marcia Gay Harden, Laurence Fishburne and Laura Linney in 'Mystic River.' The film is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by bestselling author Dennis Lehane. It is a crime-drama set on the back-drop of Boston where three kids witness something horrible committed against one of the kids that will grow up to be Tim Robbins. The other two will grow up to be Sean Penn, our protagonist in the thinnest sense of the word, and Kevin Bacon. They all now live separate lives but when the murder of Penn's daughter brings them together once more their lives are shattered as pieces of evidence are brought together. Penn is sent into a violent rage and conducts his own investigations whilst Bacon, now a cop tries to conduct the investigation by the book and Robbins begins to drown himself in his own misery. There is a lot to admire about the film but there is also a lot I disliked. I admired the cinematography and the Boston setting was perfect. The actors worked well together and as a mystery it kept me guessing until the very end of the film. I liked the cinematography and the tension that is built in many scenes but the film as a whole never reached its potential for me. I see the relevance of the crime committed against the younger Tim Robbins but that part of the story never comes full circle in a way for the story to be complete. Many of the characters are not likable and a sub-plot involving Bacon and his wife feels forced and unnecessary almost like Eastwood was trying to give the audience some emotional pay off. Marcia Gay Harden and Tim Robbins who are the two best things about the movie act their hearts off to bring empathy and sympathy to their two characters and when the film does come to a close we find that our two beloved characters end up the worst off and while I don't mind that with a lot of movies this made me frustrated. Bacon is average and Penn creates a complex and deep character but the film really gives him one truly dramatic scene to work with whilst the others work but aren't entirely emotionally satisfying. Based on his sole performance I don't think it should have won the Oscar but judging on the two performances that year, (he also worked in 21 Grams) I do think he was deserving of the award. And sadly Fishburne and Linney aren't given much to do in the film. All of these elements could have worked if it wasn't for the usually brilliant direction of Clint Eastwood. Hear he directs with an uncomfortable clunkiness and the story has no flow which comes so easily in his other films. There are certainly better crime dramas out there and better Clint Eastwood films as well.