Affleck's Triumph (Sort of)

Rickles Film Reviews Vol. 3

Bothers combine their strength to come up with something not terrible.

As amazing as it may seem, it’s true. Coming from me, a long time hater of Ben Affleck, this is indeed high praise. When you think of him a hefty number of horrible films come to mind (see Armageddon, Daredevil, Paycheck, and Pearl Harbor for proof). When you been this shitty so long it’s inventible that you would long for some respect. Especially when your best friend is in one great movie after another (Matt Damon= Bourne Trilogy, Ocean’s Trilogy, and Rounder’s). Given this background it’s easy to grasp to sheer overcompensation that is Gone Baby Gone. In his bid to be taken seriously Ben has made a truly joyless film. Not that theirs nothing about the movie to admire, it just belongs on that exclusive list of films that are good but no ones ever needs to see them more than once. AV Club recently made such a list, and I would add this movie into consideration for that company.

Don’t pay attention to the jokey Violet Femmes title this is a “serious” picture. Gone Baby Gone is the story of an investigator hired to help find a missing girl. Off to the races with a no win, miserable setup. Needless to say things never really take a turn for the better. However, the film is well acted, has many surprising plot twist, and (shock) is soundly directed. Casey Affleck, Ben’s little brother is quite good. I had only seen him in minor roles but here he actually holds his own against seasoned pros Ed Harris & Morgan Freeman. Ben’s direction is spot on in the action sequences. Affleck adapted the script from a novel by the same guy who wrote Mystic River. That film is a good comparison in tone, setting, and acting style.

I think this is a good movie, which is definitely a surprise. Nevertheless, I would have never seen it if I didn’t work at a movie theater were I saw it for free. I would recommend you wait till DVD or steal it off the internet. Also don’t watch this movie by yourself because it is completely depressing and without someone to vent to you will feel awful for awhile. If you like to make yourself miserable, and I know some of you do, this is a good tool for that.