Mystic River (2003)

Average rating

(67%)

Starring:	Sean Penn \| Tim Robbins \| Kevin Bacon \| Laurence Fishburne \| Laura Linney \| Marcia Gay Harden
Director:	Clint Eastwood, Clint Eastwood
Studio:	WARNER HOME VIDEO
Run time:	137 mins
Genres:	Drama \| Thriller
Languages:	English
Released:	June 04, 2004

Three friends, Jimmy, Sean and Dave, reunite after the death of Jimmy's daughter. Sean is a detective assigned to the case and has to deal with Jimmy's rages.

Radio Times

Since his undoubted masterpiece Unforgiven Clint Eastwood's directorial career has been disappointingly uneven, with the likes of Space Cowboys and Blood Work indicating that he might be a spent force. Mystic River, though, is a welcome return to form — an ambitious, well-crafted adult drama featuring sterling performances from an excellent cast and which only just misses greatness by a whisker. Sean Penn, Tim Robbins and Kevin Bacon play childhood friends whose lives are shattered when Penn's daughter is brutally murdered, an event that forces them to confront a horrific episode from their own shared past. Eastwood directs with crisp efficiency but Brian Helgeland's screenplay somehow fails to convince, emerging as a sequence of well-written individual scenes rather than an integrated whole, while the plot relies too much on coincidence. Judged to the highest standards then, this is a flawed piece of work, but it still ranks as must-see, grown-up cinema.

Rating of 2 stars out of 5
Halliwell's Film Guide

Brooding, grey-tinged drama that aspires to the stature ot tragedy, but falls short; the narrative is too manipulative and fatalistic, and buckles under the weight put upon it.

Highest rated reviews

104 out of 116 people found the following review helpful:

Rated 5.0 stars
Eastwood Does It Again

K Chawgo from London, England, 9th June, 2004

Clint Eastwood has done it again with a true cinema classic. There are no showy camera angles nor computer effects to help this film along. He lets the characters emerge and do the work for the camera which provides a very powerful, not to be missed film. Robbins, Penn, Bacon and Fishburne are excellent in their characterisation of the characters. The script is excellent and without given anything away, it was good to see a film without a tacked on ending coming out of Hollywood for a change. This is a truely gripping film.

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Most recent reviews

Rated 4.5 stars
Extremely Atmospheric Drama

simonpickersgill from , 17th August, 2010

Director Clint Eastwood gathers a master cast for this harrowing tale of a childhood mistake and its tragic repercussions on the adult life of its three main characters. I always enjoy watching Sean Penn, and his performance here does not disappoint. Joined along the way by Tim Robbins and Kevin Bacon, the three actors roll out a story that delivers a sharp blow to the gut. Set against a bleak backdrop the movie deals with some very sensitive subjects in quick succession and straight away you're drawn into the drama. The actors not only make you believe their pain, but feel it with them. This is a dark film and will leave you exhausted, but for a genuine appreciation of the art of acting this cannot be missed.

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