Gone Baby Gone
R
2007
***1/2 out of ****

This was a film that I wanted to see back when it was first released in theaters, never got around to it, and then forgot about. Then one day it appeared as if by magic in my mailbox from Netflix (greatest service ever, btw). I was excited, and had an 'oh yeah I really want to watch that' moment. Then I forgot about it again and it sat on top of my DVD player for three months. I finally took it over to a friend's place and watched it earlier this week.

Premise: A child is abducted. The police are getting nowhere. The child's desperate aunt goes out and hires two young private detectives who specialize in missing persons to assist in the investigation. Embarking on the investigation leads them through twist after twist after twist, eventually culminating in a deep, thought-provoking conclusion.

The only bad thing I can come up with to say about this movie is that I think it went on a little long. The writing was amazing, the acting was amazing, and the filming was amazing. It's a very, very, very intense movie, definitely not something to watch if you're looking for a little light entertainment.


All of the acting was perfect, but most noteworth was Casey Affleck. He was truly amazing. His performance was beautifully nuanced, gone from mild mannered everyone's friend to menacing and dangerous with barely an eyeblink. His reactions to the traumatizing situations he finds himself in are believeable and moving. Amy Ryan was also definitely worth noting for her portrayal of a drug addict bereft mother, going from seemingly uncaring to sudden terror after finding the corpse of a man they believe took her daughter when suddenly the situation becomes real.

It's difficult to talk about this movie without giving away key plot lines, so I'm going to stop here. Although I probably never need to see this movie again, it was incredible in its unblinking, unflinching stare at difficult moral dilemmas and the consequences of choices made. The end is great food for thought, and makes for an interesting debate topic.




"He lied to me. Now I can't think of one reason big enough for him to lie that's small enough not to matter."