Gone Baby Gone

Affleck’s adaptation of Dennis Lehane’s novel is unarguably well-made, perfectly acted, absorbing with its atmosphere of an Irish suburb of Boston and especially in the night scenes it’s completely riveting. Casey Affleck in the role of the “neighborly" private detective is worthy of the supreme acting accolade, just like many of the supporting actors. Seemingly the perfect crime movie. However, there is one small but. After the scene with the attack on the house and one subsequent conversation, it is absolutely clear “who, how and why". However, a long-winded half hour of wannabe surprising revelations follow. Not that it matters that much, since the picture culminates in these scenes in terms of acting, but as a whole it needlessly loses energy. At least the complete end with the repercussions of a certain decision is again back to the standard of most of the movie. In other words, at the qualitative zenith of the genre. After his feature-length directing debut, I’ll have to keep an eye out for Ben Affleck. With his economical and firm-handed directing that doesn’t draw attention to itself, he is very similar to Clint Eastwood. Let’s hope it stays with him and that he will no longer prance around in front of the camera. Both for his and mainly for our own good. (01/07/2008)

Without a final twist and uncompromisingly leaving the question “What is right?”, it would only have been a thriller with brilliant direction and performances, but with that Gone Baby Gone becomes an exceptionally intense experience and a superb drama. But is the answer to that question really that hard? Not for me. (07/28/2008)

I can forgive a lot of things, but the fact that the film gets virtually nowhere despite three tons of moralizing and wannabe "think about that" bullshit, hardly. I'm not of the opinion that a film needs to have a statement, but if it's fucking pretending to be one all the time, it could at least live up to expectations. An asterisk for the scene in the pedophile's lair. (11/09/2009)

A quality film for one evening. It's not an Oscar-worthy masterpiece, nor a film that you could watch twenty times and still discover something new, it's ordinary, austere, technically simple, and quite effective in certain moments. But the storyline isn't that elaborate, and many things can be guessed from the course of the film. Above all, Ed Harris is outstanding. The ending didn't deliver the catharsis I expected, but it has a logical culmination. Ben Affleck is definitely better behind the camera than in front of it, and I think that has surprised many film fans, especially since it's his directorial debut. (08/09/2008)

Do you remember Ben Affleck? Definitely, yes, his star hasn't fallen, quite the opposite. He is the actor that many people couldn't stand precisely because of how he acts/doesn't act. However, he managed to win an Oscar. Not surprisingly, for the screenplay of the movie "Good Will Hunting". It turned out that he is not only a great screenwriter but also an excellent director. His first success was precisely the film "Gone Baby Gone", for which he also wrote the screenplay. If something speaks to you in the movie, then it is love for the city. Not the beautiful things that are shown to tourists, but love for the city as it is. "Gone Baby Gone" is not a detective story, it is mainly focused on one person who seeks justice at any cost. The law is the law, and even though his methods are very harsh, his language is not refined, and his age is young, he always seeks the truth at any cost. A great, powerful story about a child abduction, a brilliant ending, and unexpectedly good performances by the actors. Maybe it's because an actor who becomes a director knows what he wants from actors. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2012/04/diar-milovnika-filmu-c-005-reziser.html (02/15/2013)