Mystic River (2003)

	Directed by: Clint Eastwood	COUNTRY USA GENRE Drama/Thriller NORWEGIAN TITLE Mystic River RUNNING TIME 137 minutes
	Produced by: Clint Eastwood Judie Hoyt Robert Lorenz
	Written by (based on the novel by Dennis Lehane): Brian Helgeland

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Jimmy Markum	Sean Penn
Dave Boyle	Tim Robbins
Detective Sean Devine	Kevin Bacon	½
Detective "Whitey" Powers	Laurence Fishburne
Celeste Boyle	Marcia Gay Harden
Annabeth Markum	Laura Linney	½
Brendan Harris	Tom Guiry
Ray "Silent Ray" Harris	Spencer Treat Clark	-
Katherine "Katie" Markum	Emmy Rossum	-
Val Savage	Kevin Chapman	-
Mr. Loonie	Eli Wallach	-

Review

A stellar cast and solemn direction by Clint Eastwood lay the foundation for this adaptation of Dennis Lehane's bestselling crime novel – a critical and commercial success when it was released in 2003. The film has an intriguing premise, as we are introduced to three young kids from Charlestown, Boston, on the day of a traumatic event in 1975, before reuniting with them 25 years later, when their lives have taken different turns, all more or less revolving around crime and guilt. The devices Eastwood employs in order to elevate the story beyond familiar crime fiction tropes are slow pacing and overly expressive acting, which unfortunately aren't the right recipe to disguise the script's weaknesses and contrivances. Eastwood aims to create an all-encompassing piece about loss, guilt, and original sin, but the overemphasised themes and humourless sentimentality merely underline the film's ultimate lack of subtlety. As it stands, Mystic River is a fairly well-structured police procedural with a seemingly intriguing plot just a notch above Law and Order standard. Handled differently, it could also have become something more.