Mystic River - Hard-hitting, gritty and great

Shame on me for not knowing that Mystic River was directed by Clint Eastwood until AFTER I'd watched it (yes, somehow I must have missed his name in the opening credits - shame on me, I know). I was just watching it because of its pretty impressive ensemble cast, including Sean Penn, Kevin Bacon and Tim Robbins.  To be honest, it's not like Mr Eastwood has that much of a 'visual style' to his work.  It's not like a Guy Ritchie film where you can probably tell who's directing it after just a few scenes.  However, what Eastwood may lack in visual flair, he clearly doesn't find it hard to get the best out of his actors.

We meet the three when they're just boys and Tim Robbins gets abducted by two men. He later escapes, but carries the scars with him right the way into adulthood. When they're grown up and have families of their own, Sean Penn's nineteen-year old daughter is murdered and Tim Robbins is the primary suspect.

Not only did I not know about Clint Eastwood's involvement, but I also didn't know that it was based on a book. I haven't read this, so I can't compare the film to this. All I can say is that it's a pretty intense ride. You need to be in the mood for something pretty heavy as there's no `light-relief' to be found here.

All the characters play their respective parts well (Laurence Fishburne should get a special mention as he has the least character development and yet still brings more than a few nice touches to his role as supporting detective) and it was no wonder that it eventually went on to win Oscars.  I'm no real fan of Sean Penn (mainly due to his real-life rants), but even I could put my natural dislike for him aside to enjoy his performance here.

I won't give too much away about the plot, but I can't imagine many people will be disappointed with what they've watched. As long as you're in the mood for something dark, this should suffice.

9/10 almost as perfect as The Godfather