Gone Baby Gone , 2007, Ben Affleck
Fall of 2007 is turning out to have some incredible movies. Last week it was
Michael Clayton, in a few weeks I have high hopes for
No Country for Old Men, and this week brings us Ben Affleck's directorial debut, the riveting crime drama,
Gone Baby Gone.
This is a powerhouse of a movie about a young couple {Casey Affleck and Michelle Monaghan) who are hired to augment a police investigation into a missing 4 yr. old girl in Boston. They get teamed up with two cops (Ed Harris and John Ashton) and find their investigation going in places no one expected.
First, let me say that
Gone Baby Gone is an assured piece of film making, and probably one of the best debut films in recent years - Ben Affleck has hit a home run; his direction and screenplay (shared with Aaron Stockard) will most likely be remembered come awards season. But as good as the movie is, and it's one of the best of the year, I also have a hard time recommending it to the casual movie goer because it is unrelentingly depressing. We're thrown into the dark underbelly of Boston from the first moment on screen and we're never let up for a clean breath. I can't recall a sadder movie in recent memory...this is not mere entertainment - it punches you in the gut and leaves you pondering a horrible dilemma I hope no one ever has to deal with in real life.
Even so, it's close to perfect and I certainly recommend it to those of you here who take their film seriously.
Casey Affleck (Ben's younger brother) is outstanding in the lead. He carries that perfect Boston swagger and blank face so as not to reveal too much, yet behind his eyes we see what he's feeling. It's a tight, subdued performance, and one I hope gets some recognition. As I'd only seen him in supporting roles I had no clue he had the chops to pull this off, and he does. In fact, the whole film is pretty much a master class of acting, with Morgan Freeman, Harris, Ashton, (where the heck has he been?), and Amy Madigan all giving some of their best work in years. There's also an incredible performance by Amy Ryan as the mother of the missing girl that is just astonishing.
Director Affleck gets everything right - from the minor roles to the Boston feel of the film...this is an excellent companion piece to that other film adapted from a Dennis Lehan book,
Mystic River. The only quibble I have is all the loose ends at the end are maybe tied up a bit tool cleanly and quickly...but it's a minor point.
What I'm most impressed with is not in the twists and turns of the plot (and there are plenty) but in the twists and turns in the characters we get to know. People we think of as good turn bad but then turn good again...sort of. This is a movie that does not shy away from admitting there are a million shades of gray to everyone's motivations in life, nor does it shy away from the Big Questions: the end of the film poses such a conundrum I'm not sure I could answer it myself with any faith.
The lead protagonist is faced with a perplexing moral question, yet he takes stand on one side - and risks losing everything he has - on that principle. I can't remember there being a film character so basically
good in the face of life's evils.
Gone Baby Gone is a great film and makes me wonder what the hell took Affleck so long between
Good Will Hunting and this. He obviously is more talented behind the camera than he is in front of it.
Four out of Five stars.
Mod Edit: Fixed your title.