When Clint Eastwood’s name is attached to a film as director, there’s only one thing you can do: block out two hours of your life, shut off the phone, kick back and get ready for a deeply personal and all too real tale. Mystic River is one such movie. The film took home two Academy Awards in 2003 for Sean Penn (Best Actor) and Tim Robbins (Best Supporting Actor). However, the layers of acting go even deeper than anything these two awards can dictate.
Mystic River is the story of three friends from Boston. When one of those children is abducted and abused, their lives are changed forever. That may sound like a rehashed story you’ve heard before, but nothing will prepare you for the intense emotional tale that follows. This film is more than a simple drama or mystery; Mystic River is harshly real character-driven story.
Sean Penn plays Jimmy Markum. Jimmy is a father, husband and ex-con. His life is turned upside down when his daughter is discovered brutally murdered by Sean (Kevin Bacon), Jimmy’s childhood friend turned big city cop. Their childhood friend David, played by Tim Robbins, is one of the suspects in the case. In most big name films, you’re left wondering if the actors will have competing egos or if the movie will sacrifice true-to-life performances for over-the-top Hollywood theatrics. This is simply not the case in Mystic River. Jimmy’s reaction to losing his daughter is nothing less than brilliant. Your eyes won’t help but widen at the deeply emotional and tragic scene. Tim Robbins, who plays the role of an abused child, only bolsters Penn’s performance. Robbins has several moments where he plays a Gollum (Lord of the Rings) type character. At times David feels like a sympathetic boy trapped in a childhood he never had a chance to live, while at other times he transforms into a seemingly methodical psychopath. His subtle shift is overwhelmingly captivating. Robbins will send chills up your spine with each nuance.
Clint Eastwood does a masterful job directing. As you’ll see in the special features carried over from the DVD, Eastwood allows the actors to act first before imposing his direction. The symphony of brilliant performance coupled with Eastwood’s sage eye creates perfection on-screen.
The film is not without it’s comedic moments. Laurence Fishburne plays Sgt. Whitey Powers. At first it was difficult hearing Fishburne put on a Boston accent, but after a while I didn’t notice. Fishburne makes several comments regarding the suspects in the case that are just darkly comedic. For instance in one scene he refers Sean, his partner, that he can tell Jimmy has been in prison by Jimmy’s tension. When Sean contradicts him, Sgt Powers says, “No, that’s in his stomach. The tension in his shoulders - that’s prison.”
The film has gone through an excellent high-def upgrade. The film quality is several times more impressive than it ever was in Standard Def. The drab contrasting colors really help to emphasize the moral decay of film’s events. I was impressed by the sound quality on the Blu-ray. It really feels as though Warner put some additional time into making sure the audio tracks were remastered. I’ve seen a lot of Blu-rays where sound was more of an after thought, so I completely appreciated it here.
All of the special features included in the Blu-ray release are in Standard Definition and are ported from the prior DVD release. The special features include a behind-the-scenes talk with the Dennis Lehane, whose novel the film was based on, and Brian Helgeland, who adapted the screenplay. There is also another behind-the-scenes featurette that focuses more on the actors. However, both of these bonus features present nothing significant. They serve as little more than the cast and production paying tribute to one another. The Commentary by Tim Robbins and Kevin Bacon appears to have only been done in part. Usually, you hear commentary throughout the movie. In this film, it seems like they just asked Robbins and Bacon to comment on certain scenes. Either that or the actors were in a rush. There are a few extensive interviews with Clint Eastwood, Tim Robbins and Kevin Bacon conducted on the Charlie Rose Show.
Despite a lack of special features, Mystic River is still an extraordinary movie that looks exceptional in high-def. This is one of those films that will leave a knot in your stomach that you will never forget. Captivating performances and masterful direction makes this a movie for the ages.
Special Features
- Commentary by Tim Robbins and Kevin Bacon
- Mystic River: Beneath the Surface
- Bravo TV Special Mystic River: From Page to Screen
- The Charlie Rose Show Interviews (with Clint Eastwood, Tim Robbins, and Kevin Bacon)
Directed by: Clint Eastwood
Studio: Warner Bros
Release Date: Feb. 2, 2009
Rating: 8 / 10
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