Mystic River Review

by Bob Bloom (bobbloom AT iquest DOT net)
October 16th, 2003

MYSTIC RIVER (2003) Starring Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Marcia Gay Harden, Laura Linney, Laurence Fishburne, Kevin Chapman, Thomas Guiry, Emmy Rossum and Spencer Treat Clark. Music by Clint Eastwood. Based on the novel by Dennis Lehane. Screenplay by Brian Helgeland. Directed by Clint Eastwood. Rated R. Running time: Approx. 140 mins.

Tragedy builds upon tragedy in the dark and distressing Mystic River, a painful drama masterly directed by Clint Eastwood.

The story of three boyhood friends whose lives are changed by one catastrophic experience than brought together by another features an all-star cast of performers in their top form.

Mystic River, based on the novel by Dennis Lehane with a screenplay Brian Helgeland, is painful to watch.

It is not a physical hurt, but blows to the psyche and the soul that make you wince as they erode the spark that holds a person's moral fiber in its thin grasp.

Set in the blue-collar neighborhood of Boston's East Buckingham, the story opens with three young friends, Jimmy, Sean and Dave playing street hockey. Through a ruse, Dave is abducted by two pedophiles who sexually assault him over a four-day period before he is able to escape.
The film then skips ahead 25 years. The three friends are reunited because of the murder of Jimmy's 19-year-old daughter.

Investigating the case is Sean (Kevin Bacon), now a cop, and his partner, Whitey (Laurence Fishburne). And using his own methods, Jimmy (Sean Penn), an ex-con, begins looking for answers.

Dave (Tim Robbins) is connected to the crime through a series of circumstances, which also force him to confront his childhood demons.
Eastwood does not rush the story. He lingers on his actors, allowing the audience to get under the skin of their characters and discover their history.

Penn has never been better. His Jimmy seethes with danger as well as despair as he simultaneously grieves for his daughter and seeks justice by any means possible.

Jimmy, after spending two years is prison for robbery, now makes his living as the owner of a neighborhood grocery store. Yet the death of his daughter unleashes the dark side he had buried years before.
It's a performance with Academy Award potential written all over it.
While Penn's role is the most splashy, Robbins' Dave is the more complicated bit of acting. He has to leave the audience wondering if because of his history, he is capable of such a heinous act.

Dave is a ghost, a walking dead man, his soul raped, his spirit violated. Dave is haunted, a human husk. Robbins portrayal, too, should be recognized come Oscar nomination time.

Marcia Gay Harden as Celeste, Dave's wife, also is touched by the killing. She is overwhelmed with dread, doubt and uncertainty, and her fears lead to dire consequences. She, too, deserves a nomination when Oscar voters cast their ballots.

Bacon and Fishburne are comfortable and compatible as two veteran partners who thoroughly know and appreciate each other's moods and habits.

Eastwood does not allow his actors to be too showy. When possible he prefers gestures or body language to words.

At about 2 hours and 20 minutes, Mystic River does overstay its welcome a bit. It ends on an unnecessary coda instead of during a sequence that would tie it into the opening scene.

And Laura Linney as Jimmy's wife plays a scene during the last reel that comes out of left field and seems totally inappropriate for her character.

Those minor miscues aside, Mystic River is a riveting adult drama, one of Eastwood's best directorial efforts in years. It is a heartbreaking slice of human drama that should not be missed; a movie that should be considered when Oscar nominations are announced.

Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette, IN. He can be reached by e-mail at [email protected] or at [email protected]. Other reviews by Bloom can be found at www.jconline.com by clicking on movies.
Bloom's reviews also appear on the Web at the Rottentomatoes Web site, www.rottentomatoes.com and at the Internet Movie Database:
http://www.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Bob+Bloom

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