Mystic River is a 2003 American drama film directed, co-produced and scored by Clint Eastwood, starring Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Laurence Fishburne, Marcia Gay Harden, Laura Linney and Emmy Rossum. The film was written by Brian Helgeland, based onDennis Lehane's novel of the same name.
The film opened to widespread critical acclaim. It was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Supporting Actress. Sean Penn won Best Actor and Tim Robbins won Best Supporting Actor, making Mystic River the first film to win both awards since Ben-Hur in 1959.
Plot
The film opens with three boys, Jimmy Marcus, Sean Devine, and Dave Boyle playing hockey in a Boston street in 1977. A car pulls up and a man pretending to be a police officer gets out, and tells Dave to get in the car. He is held in a basement and abused by two child molesters. Four days later, he escapes.
Twenty-five years later, the boys are now grown and still living in Boston. Jimmy is an ex-con running a neighborhood store, while Dave is a blue-collar worker, still haunted by his abduction. The two are still neighbors and related by marriage. Jimmy's 19 year old daughter Katie is secretly dating Brendan Harris, a boy Jimmy despises. She and Brendan are planning on eloping to marry in Las Vegas.
Katie goes out for the night with her girl friends and is seen by Dave at a local bar. That night, Katie is murdered, and Dave comes home with an injured hand and blood on his clothes, which his wife Celeste helps him clean up. Dave claims that he fought off a mugger and "bashed his head into the concrete", and possibly killed him. Sean, who is now a detective with theMassachusetts State Police, investigates Katie's murder. In a subplot, Sean's pregnant wife Lauren has left him.
Over the course of the film, Sean and his partner track down leads while Jimmy conducts his own investigation using his neighborhood connections. Sean discovers that the gun used to kill Katie was also used in a liquor store robbery during the 1980s by "Just Ray" Harris, the father of Brendan (Katie's boyfriend). Harris has been missing for some time, but Sean believes that his gun was still in the house. Sergeant Powers suspects Dave as a possible perpetrator because he was one of the last people to see Katie alive. He also has a wounded hand and even though he continues to tell his wife he got it while being mugged, he tells the police a different story - soon Jimmy becomes suspicious of it. Dave continues to behave strangely, which upsets his wife to the point she is afraid he will hurt her. While Jimmy and his associates conduct their investigation, Dave's wife eventually tells Jimmy about Dave's behavior and the bloody clothing and her suspicions.
Jimmy and his friends get Dave drunk at a local bar. When Dave leaves the bar, the men follow him out. Jimmy tells Dave that he shot "Just Ray" Harris at that same location for ratting him out and sending him to jail. Jimmy informs Dave that his wife thinks he murdered Katie and tells Dave that he will let him live if he confesses; if he does not he will kill him. Dave repeatedly tells Jimmy that he did kill someone but it was not Katie: he beat a child molester to death after finding him having sex with a child prostitute in a car. Jimmy does not believe Dave's claim and threatens him with a knife. When Dave finally admits to killing Katie thinking he can escape with his life, Jimmy kills him and disposes of his body in the adjacent Mystic River.
While Dave is being killed, Brendan (having found out about his father's gun during questioning) confronts his younger brother Ray Jr. and his brother's friend John about Katie's murder. He beats the two boys and threatens to kill them if they don't admit their guilt, but he is almost shot by John. Sean and Powers arrive just in time to stop it.
The next morning, Sean tells Jimmy that the police have Katie's murderers – who have confessed. She was killed by Brendan's brother and his friend in a violent prank gone wrong. Sean asks Jimmy if he has seen Dave, because he is wanted for questioning in another case, the murder of a known child molester. A distraught Jimmy thanks Sean for finding his daughter's killers, but says "if only you had been a little faster." Sean reunites with his wife and his daughter Nora.
[edit]Cast
- Sean Penn as Jimmy Marcus
- Tim Robbins as Dave Boyle
- Kevin Bacon as Sean Devine
- Laurence Fishburne as Sergeant Whitey Powers
- Marcia Gay Harden as Celeste Boyle
- Laura Linney as Annabeth Marcus
- Kevin Chapman as Val Savage
- Tom Guiry as Brendan Harris
- Emmy Rossum as Katie Marcus
- Spencer Treat Clark as Silent Ray Harris
- Robert Wahlberg as Kevin Savage
- Edward O'Keefe as Communion Priest
- Jenny O'Hara as Esther Harris
- John Doman as Driver
- Connor Paolo as Young Sean Devine
- Cayden Boyd as Michael Boyle
- Jonathan Togo as Pete
- Will Lyman as FBI Agent Birden
- Ari Graynor as Eve Pigeon
- Ken Cheeseman as Dave's Friend In Bar
- Michael McGovern as '77 Reporter
- Eli Wallach as Mr. Loonie, Liquor Store Owner (uncredited)
- Paul Barber as the Delivery Man
[edit]Release
[edit]Reception
Mystic River was well received by critics as well as viewers. The film has an 87% approval rating based on 191 reviews from critics at the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, and an even higher rating of 95% from its "Top Critics".[2] At the website MetaCritic, which utilizes a normalized rating system, the film earned a rating of 84/100 ("universal acclaim") based on 42 reviews.[3] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone wrote "Clint Eastwood pours everything he knows about directing into Mystic River. His film sneaks up, messes with your head, and then floors you. You can't shake it. It's that haunting, that hypnotic."[1]
[edit]Box office
Mystic River has earned $156,822,020 worldwide with $90,135,191 in the U.S. and $66,686,829 in the international box office, which is significantly higher than the film's $30,000,000 budget.[4]
[edit]Accolades
[edit]Awards
- 76th Academy Awards:
- Best Actor in a Leading Role (Sean Penn)
- Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Tim Robbins)
- Art Directors Guild: Feature Film - Contemporary Film (Henry Bumstead [production designer] and Jack G. Taylor Jr. [art director])
- Blue Ribbon Awards: Best Foreign Language Film
- 24th Boston Society of Film Critics Awards: Best Picture, Best Ensemble Cast
- 9th BFCA Critics' Choice Awards: Best Actor (Sean Penn), Best Supporting Actor (Tim Robbins)
- Cannes Film Festival: Golden Coach (Clint Eastwood)
- Casting Society of America: Best Casting for Feature Film - Drama
- Central Ohio Film Critics: Best Actor (Sean Penn), Best Supporting Actor (Tim Robbins), Best Supporting Actress (Marcia Gay Harden)
- Chicago Film Critics Association: Best Supporting Actor (Tim Robbins)
- César Awards (France): Best Foreign Language Film
- Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association: Best Actor (Sean Penn)
- Florida Film Critics Circle: Best Actor (Sean Penn), Best Supporting Actor (Tim Robbins)
- Fotogramas de Plata (Spain): Best Foreign Language Film
- 61st Golden Globe Awards:
- Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama (Sean Penn)
- Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture (Tim Robbins)
- Kansas City Film Critics Circle: Best Actor (Sean Penn)
- Kinema Junpo Awards (Japan): Best Foreign Language Film
- Las Vegas Film Critics Society: Best Actor (Sean Penn)
- London Film Critics Circle: Actor of the Year (Sean Penn), Director of the Year (Clint Eastwood)
- Mainichi Film Concours (Japan): Best Foreign Language Film
- National Board of Review: Best Picture, Best Actor (Sean Penn)
- National Society of Film Critics: Best Director (Clint Eastwood)
- PEN Center USA West Literary Awards: Best Screenplay (Brian Helgelan)
- Sant Jordi Awards (Spain): Best Foreign Language Film
- Satellite Awards: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama (Sean Penn), Best Screenplay - Adapted (Brian Helgeland)
- Screen Actors Guild: Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role (Tim Robbins)
- Seattle Film Critics: Best Supporting Actress (Marcia Gay Harden)
- Southeastern Film Critics Association: Best Supporting Actor (Tim Robbins), Best Screenplay - Adapted (Brian Helgeland)
- USC Scripter Award: Brian Helgeland (screenwriter) and Dennis Lehane (author)
- Uruguayan Film Critics Association (Uruguay): Best Film
- Vancouver Film Critics Circle: Best Actor (Sean Penn)
[edit]Nominations
- 76th Academy Awards:
- Best Picture
- Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Marcia Gay Harden)
- Best Director (Clint Eastwood)
- Best Screenplay - Adapted (Brian Helgeland)
- American Cinema Editors: Best Edited Feature Film - Dramatic (Joel Cox)
- American Screenwriters Association: Discover Screenwriting Award (Brian Helgeland)
- Argentine Film Critics Association: Best Foreign Film (Clint Eastwood)
- Australian Film Institute: Best Foreign Film
- Awards of the Japanese Academy: Best Foreign Film
- 57th BAFTA Film Awards:
- Best Actor in a Leading Role (Sean Penn)
- Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Tim Robbins)
- Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Laura Linney)
- Best Screenplay - Adapted (Brian Helgeland)
- Broadcast Film Critics Association: Best Acting Ensemble, Best Supporting Actress (Mary Gay Harden), Best Director (Clint Eastwood), Best Writer (Brian Helgeland), Best Composer (Clint Eastwood)
- Cannes Film Festival: Golden Palm (Clint Eastwood)[5]
- Cinema Writers Circle (Spain): Best Foreign Film
- European Film Awards: Screen International Award (Clint Eastwood)
- 61st Golden Globe Awards:
- Best Motion Picture - Drama
- Best Director - Motion Picture (Clint Eastwood)
- Best Screenplay - Motion Picture (Brian Helgeland)
- IFTA Awards: Best International Film, Best International Actor (Sean Penn)
- International Horror Guild: Best Movie
- Motion Picture Sound Editors: Best Sound Editing in Domestic Features - Dialogue & ADR
- Online Film Critics Society: Best Picture, Best Actor (Sean Penn), Best Supporting Actor (Tim Robbins), Best Director (Clint Eastwood), Best Screenplay - Adapted (Brian Helgeland)
- PGA Golden Laurel Awards: Motion Picture Producer of the Year Award
- Robert Festival (Denmark): Best American Film
- Satellite Awards: Best Motion Picture - Drama, Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role - Drama (Marcia Gay Harden), Best Director (Clint Eastwood), Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing (Joel Cox), Best Sound (Alan Robert Murray, Bub Asman, Michael Semanick, Christopher Boyes and Gary Summers)
- Screen Actors Guild: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (Kevin Bacon, Laurence Fishburne, Marcia Gay Harden, Laura Linney, Sean Penn and Tim Robbins), Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role (Sean Penn)
- Writers Guild of America: Best Adapted Screenplay (Brian Helgeland)
[edit]Home media releases
The examples and perspective in this section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page. (December 2010) |
The DVD was released on June 8, 2004 and 3 editions have been released:
- Full Screen Edition
- Widescreen Edition
- 3-Disc Deluxe Edition
The film has also been released on Blu-Ray Disc, both sold separately and as a part of the Clint Eastwood collection.
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