Mystic River

Mystic River is a dark crime drama laced with intimate character studies. With minimal music, this slow, quiet film is certainly not an adrenaline-fuelled thrill ride, but rather a serious human drama that is perhaps even more thought-provokingly powerful in its conclusion than A Perfect World. A visually simple film relying mainly on the actors and editing. The editor could have still done more, but the actors save it. (11/06/2003)

It's not satisfying as a classic crime drama, but it is as a psychological drama. The film flows at the slow pace of a lazy river, there are no camera exhibitions, Clint directs artfully, giving a lot of space to actors who can show a lot of their range, and that's how I like it. Tim Robbins in particular dominates the performances, and here the Oscar is in the right hands. On the other hand, I would question the second award-winning actor, because Sean Penn, in truth, overacts in places. The intelligently written story manages to draw you in and not let go, although there are a few distracting elements, namely, the wife's strange silent phone calls to Detective Devin (played convincingly by Kevin Bacon), which have no connection to the plot and take it nowhere, and the poor symbolism in Robbins' character's reasoning – I didn't get the "vampires" (= pedophiles?) thing. Nevertheless, great satisfaction, also thanks to the unconventionally closed story. They don’t make many films like this in Hollywood today. (10/29/2005)

A very impressive work that has artfully combined the virtues of psychological drama and detective story, with the blending of the two genres in a very gritty finale being one of the greatest pros of Eastwood's film. The first part feels rather clumsy and takes on revolutions more than laboriously, but in the end, thanks mainly to Sean Penn, the narrative engine kicks in successfully, and as the minutes progress, Mystic River becomes a truly magnetizing spectacle, which, while not surprisingly deep in storytelling or extremely masterful direction, amounts to only honest and interesting narratives, great acting performances and emotional moments. The strength of the story lies primarily in the central three-petal, in the internal dilemmas and scars that protagonists have carried with them since childhood and which influence their actions... Unbalanced, but excellent. (07/24/2005)

There are several scenes that are as powerful as few in the field of psychological crime thrillers, but there also many scenes that are as mediocre as anything in the field of standard crime thrillers. It's like a river that doesn't know which way to go... (02/02/2010)

Thanks to Sean Penn's performance (not only in the formally perfect scene of finding the victim), the film is better than it would be without him. The crime story mixed with a heartrending drama holds up more than solidly until the finale, which unexpectedly escalates minute by minute and pulls many surprises on the viewer. Although you will understand what that river in the title is looking for during it, the previous atmosphere collapses in that instant. (03/27/2006)

A chamber psychological thriller that relies on a very high-quality cast and reliable, experienced direction from Clint Eastwood. It is not a film that would cause any revolution in cinematography or bring me to ecstasy with its processing; on the other hand, it does not have any significant flaws and represents a significant above-average film in its genre. Overall impression: 75%. (12/28/2007)

A dark crime drama with a fantastically intricate plot. Clint Eastwood directs coolly, distantly, and very meticulously. Sean Penn delivers a fantastic performance and the dramaturgy of Mystic River is flawless. It is exactly the kind of film where everything falls into place at the end as it should, but at the same time it is raw, harsh, and unconventional enough to confuse even the ordinary viewer. (08/17/2004)

Once again, Clint works flawlessly with human emotions, from love to pure hatred, but this time it's not so much to his credit as to all the excellent actors who play such an atmospheric and chillingly patient game that the depressing finale made me want to scream and quickly shake it all off. Unfortunately, the compelling and simply-framed psychological storyline fights too hard for attention with the detective plot, which rings a bit hollow and is ultimately not as crucial to the story as the frequency of all the interrogations and new leads might suggest. Other than the aforementioned finale, there aren’t any wow-sequences that would be permanently etched in our memories, the kind Eastwood usually delivers aplenty in his masterpieces, so I have no choice but to bring up Sean Penn and Tim Robbins again, without whom this time it wouldn't have been quite the same – but Clint probably knew who to cast :))) 80% (07/09/2011)

To criticize Eastwood is to spend the rest of my life looking nervously over my shoulder, but I've got the balls for it. Because the problem with Clint's directorial output of recent years lies mainly in the fact that he's a crappy psychologist, but would love to be one (i.e. the classic problem of all trendy psychology students, who end up psychoanalyzing their houseplants two months into their first semester, oh how many I've known). He can't seem to go deep into the characters, even though the actors help him tremendously with that. Tim Robbins' acting in particular should be watched just as a reward. Except that his monologues with cheesy metaphors (vampires, wolves) rustle the paper (or was it hustle?) and you don't believe a thing. The film's straightforward mystery storyline will please all crime fiction lovers because it's got it all and Fishburne and Bacon are likable to a fault. However, that shocking ending that the film doesn't allude to in any way beforehand squeals like a pig, no matter how well shot it is – especially the rather brutal and excellent skirmish from the unnamed characters. There's a very interesting (again, paper-rustling) scene at the end, with Penn's wife, whose relationship we've also learned quite a bit about up to this point, and will therefore cause a wrinkle on more than one forehead, and ironically it's this scene that stands out enough to clinch that fourth star, even though I still found the "traditional" bits the best part of the overall film. (06/04/2012)

A true Clint Eastwood masterpiece and my burning candidate for the best work ever in Eastwood's entire filmography. The great thing about Mystic River is that the central crime plot is informed by the very different characters of the three main protagonists, alongside their dark childhood experiences. All three characters are also exceedingly interesting to watch as adults when, due to a sudden event, they are all forced to meet again (despite the fact that each is now completely different). It works very well as a crime drama, but the almost intimate/psychological dimension adds much more urgency to the whole story with its rising intensity. Sean Penn in particular manages to convey his character's feelings and motivations to the viewer in a unique (and very much his own) way, which, combined with Tim Robbins' equally excellent performance, pushes Mystic River far beyond the boundaries of a conventional crime story. The excellent ending, which basically just crowns a brilliantly played-out romp with all the characters, is then just the cherry on top. A genre film delicacy. (12/09/2018)