Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
For my money, Clint Eastwood's gave a crowning achievement as a director,, March 10, 2008
Again, I haven't read the book however the Movie does it all. I am sure there are things we all wish to forget. Moments in time in which our lives and the lives of others are altered by one singular movement, one phrase, or that one hockey shot that was just out of reach. Nothing is more true when it comes to the lives of Jimmy (Sean Penn), Sean (Kevin Bacon) and Dave (Tim Robbins). Mystic River is an emotional and amazing film about the reconciliation of three friends and their wives by the tragic murder of Jimmy's eldest daughter, Katie Markum (Emmy Rossum). This rough Boston suburb that lies on the bank of the Mystic River is thrown into sorrow and misery over the loss. Jimmy (Penn) makes a vow to find the killer of his daughter and end him and throw him into the Mystic.
The story is superb. Twists and turns and changing plot lines makes this story brilliantly unpredictable. It proves nothing is what it seems. Dealing with issues of child abduction and the effects it has on the future, Mystic River watches and deals with the change n the course of someone life. What something would be like if Dave hadn't gotten into that strangers car? Katie Markum would never had been born to be murdered.
The acting is bar none and has been recognized by the Academy by awarding Sean Penn and Tim Robbins best actor and best supporting role at the Oscars. Sean Penn was incredible in this film. He was so into his character. An angry gangster trying to move on with his life, and get out of his life of crime and deceit. To love his children and to be the best father he can be. Strong and determined, hard and angry he tries to deal with the grief of the loss of his last real memory of his late first wife. Penn is perfect in performing this role. Tim Robbins is also and incredible actor. A man who had been abused neglected. Finally admitting to himself of the abuse he felt. He kept himself bottled and up. An angry and almost psychopathic man, who is doing his best to try and overcome the terrors he experienced by hopping in the car. An ensemble cast also included: Laura Linney, Marcia Gay Haden, Laurence Fishburn.
Mystic River is truly amazing. Clint Eastwood is an incredible director. If you like Million Dollar Baby then you will simply love "Mystic River." Not to be missed.
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98 of 122 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A stunning film based on a tragic novel., November 2, 2003
Clint Eastwood's adaptation of Dennis Lehane's wrenching best-seller, "Mystic River," is a remarkable achievement. Having read the book shortly before seeing the movie, I was impressed with Eastwood's faithfulness to the letter and spirit of Lehane's story.Sean Penn plays Jimmy Markham (Marcus in the book), a small time hood who did a stint in prison almost two decades earlier. Jimmy now owns a grocery store, is a loving family man, and seems to have given up his criminal ways. As a child, Jimmy was a close friend of Sean Devine, who grew up to become a homicide detective, and Dave Boyle, played by the wonderful Tim Robbins. Boyle endured a terrible trauma as a child, and he is tortured by horrifying thoughts that he can never escape. When Jimmy's nineteen-year-old daughter, Katie, is found brutally murdered, Sean investigates with his partner, played by Laurence Fishburne, and the lives of the three old friends intersect once again. The stellar cast of "Mystic River" is amazingly effective. Each actor completely inhabits his or her character. Sean Penn's performance is brutal and heart-rending, and Tim Robbins convincingly plays a man on the brink of madness. Supporting these fine actors are Laura Linney and Marcia Gay Harden, as Jimmy's and Dave's wives. Eastwood wisely shot his film on the streets of Boston, and Tom Stern's atmospheric and skillful cinematography contribute to the film's realistic and dramatic look. "Mystic River" is a powerful drama about how desperate people react when they are under tremendous emotional pressure. This mythic tragedy proves Faulkner's dictum, "The past is never dead. It's not even past." The mistakes we make and the injuries that we suffer are always with us in one way or another. Kudos to Eastwood and his fine cast and crew on making an exceptional film.
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163 of 206 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mystic River Runs Through Our Minds, Again and Again, November 5, 2003
Dennis Lehane wrote the book and Clint Eastwood directed the movie. It is rare that a movie is equal to the book, but in this case they are both superb works of art. Three young boys friends and playmates grow up in Southie,a neighborhood in Boston. On a summer's day, Jimmy, (Sean Penn) and Sean (Kevin Bacon) have marked their names in fresh cement, and Davey (Tim Robbins) is just about to write his name when a car drives up. A man who purports to be a detective tells them they have broken the law and takes Davey with him to tell his mom. Davey goes missing and turns up several days later after running away, a victim of sexual abduction. The friendship is no more with Davey, and he has a difficult adolescence. Years later, these three men unite after the murder of Jimmy's teenage daughter. Each man has had his tribulations. Jimmy has spent time in prison, and it appears that he remains the thug as depicted. Sean Penn gives the performance of his life. Sean became the character, Jimmy. I was
unable to take my eyes from him- he is the center of the movie- a rough, tumbled man with passion and love for his family. Sean, Kevin Bacon, has become a detective in the Massachusetts State Police. His life has fallen apart- his wife has left him and calls frequently but won't talk- what is that all about? Sean is an honest detective, an oxymoron except in his case. And Davey, Tim Robbins is rambling through life with a wife, Marcia Gay Harden and young son. Davey's wife, Celeste has a fear that Davey is responsible for the death of Jimmy's daughter. The lives of all three men and all those who surround them are intertwined in a complex maze. Did Davey murder Jimmy's daughter? Who and how is the young man who was going to leave town with Jimmy's daughter, involved with these people? Will Sean and his wife resolve their communication difficulties? This remarkable movie is a culmination of Clint Eastwood's directorial abilities. The praise that has been heaped is well deserved. Sean Penn will most certainly obtain an Oscar nomination for his part in this movie-he became the movie. The movie is indeed dark, but the message is clear. A movie well worth your time.`
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