Movie Notes: Gone Baby Gone
= 5 stars
Starring Casey Affleck, Amy Ryan, Michelle Monaghan
Directed by Ben Affleck
Synopsis
A young girl goes missing in Boston, and her aunt Beatrice hires private investigator Patrick (Casey Affleck) to find her, crossing paths with the local authorities. Based on a novel of the same name.
The Good
- Glimpse of “real” Boston in terms of blue collar burnouts, over weight folks, bar denizens, and accents as thick as baked beans. Patrick delves deeper into the case, revealing increasingly seedy characters.
- Outstanding acting — Affleck eventually proves affecting and stoic as a man presented with several tough moral choices. Also great is Amy Ryan as the “white trash” mother Helene, foul-mouthed and nonsense burnout Helene, and Monaghan as Patrick’s girlfriend “associate.” Ed Harris is also tops as a grizzled detective with a shifting purpose.
- Extremely compelling thriller — the entry point of a child in danger is used as a lead in into this seedy world. Eventually, there are two, possibly three twists that paint everything that came before into another light. Missed clues, misinterpreted characters, and ulterior motives shift the story yet make sense in retrospect.
- Everything comes down to a moral dilemma, and the ending is truly heartbreaking, but makes sense based on the character who believes in something greater than everyone around them — that people can rise above their situation and if given the chance through what’s right.
The Bad
- Although Casey Affleck is more emotive actor than his brother Ben, I wasn’t convinced in his role as private investigator until the film’s second half, where it becomes clear his outsider status is pivotal in the plot of questioning a corrupt legal system. His character needed to be an outsider for the sake of the story.
Conclusion
The best films make me forget I’m watching a movie and through several twists, affecting characters, great storytelling, and acting, Gone Baby Gone swept me away. I’ve never been a fan of Ben Affleck’s acting, so to find him an effective director was a revelation. Highly recommended.
IMDB: Gone Baby Gone
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