a good film

Rating: 8/10 (21 September 2013)

I first must say I am going to give a major spoiler later in this review but I will try and keep that a little vague. I seldom put spoilers in reviews but this film is complex and I must bring up the turn of events. As far as acting goes this is Jake Gyllenhaal's film. He is excellent throughout and the most human person in the film. His character is certainly who I identified with. Jake Gyllenhaal's acting progressed and was superior in the last part of the film.
This is certainly not a liberal film and not conservative either. The ending was clear and I do not see any ambiguousness in the ending either. It was obvious what was happening in the last 30 seconds. Further even the small comment early in the film about being against deer hunting when we sit around eating hamburgers at McDonald's with industrialized slaughter to feed millions is absolutely a good point about society's hypocrisy. But I don't want to deviate from the plot. This was just one tiny early sentence in the film.
I do believe the film could have been just as good with a little less brutality. I am especially referring to the water part which was not needed. In the middle I wasn't sure if I would like the film. But ultimately I would say it was a top film. The acting and the story was fine. The religious angle actually changed as the film played out. Now for a major spoiler. Who would ever believe that the priest may actually have been correct? Was this a war against God? I will say no more about that.
Ultimately, this film could not be entirely judged to be dark. Certainly the cop was intense and believable. There was some deserved justice delivered even for the brutality. Although the legal penalties were not reached and i will leave that vague. The final 10 minutes was riveting. And even some fast car scenes were very effective because of the depth of the plot. i have tried to be somewhat vague for those who have not yet seen the film. And the ending was very clear to me.