Based on a British TV series, Edge of Darkness explores a parent's grief and vengeance with a touch of corporate greed and dirty politics.
Thomas Craven (Mel Gibson), a Boston cop, is the widowed father of daughter Emma (Bojana Novakovic), a research scientist. When Emma returns home for a visit, she is soon gunned down at the front door of Craven's house. At first, Craven believes the gunman was targeting him, and he vows to find out the killer.
Soon, he discovers there's more to the story than the surface evidence. It seems that Emma was working on a top-secret project at a corporation in D.C., headed by Jack Bennett (Danny Huston). Without clearance, Craven's getting nowhere with his investigation. Then a mysterious man, Jedburgh (Ray Winstone), visits Craven and tells him to back off. Of course, Craven would not oblige. Craven's probes eventually lead him to a deep conspiracy, involving powerful politicians, that has already resulted in multiple deaths. With nothing to lose, Craven presses on to avenge his daughter's death.
It's been a while since Mel Gibson (Signs) last went in front of the cameras. Thomas Craven is his first action hero role in a long time, and Gibson's still got it. Much older and mature, Gibson gives a solid performance both as a grieving father and a calculated, hardboiled detective. It's easy to identify and sympathize with the character.
Ray Winstone (Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll) has a secondary but pivotal role as Jedburgh. He and Gibson play well together, but somehow his role is too peripheral to make any real impact, until the end. Danny Huston (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) is slick as the corporate weasel but the character is rather rote and clichéd.
Bojana Novakovic (Drag Me to Hell) is fine and sympathetic as Craven's daughter, Emma. Shawn Roberts (I Love You, Beth Cooper) is aptly intense for the role of Emma's boyfriend. Denis O'Hare (The Proposal) is in fine form as a government weasel, and Damian Young (Everybody's Fine) is equally rogue as Senator Pine.
Written by The Departed veteran William Monahan and Andrew Bovell (Blessed), the screenplay is taut and intense. However, it lacks focus; it's hard to decide what kind of movie they're trying to make: Is it a mystery? An action thriller? A story about redemption? At the end, we get a revenge story starring one of Hollywood's biggest stars. There's nothing wrong with it, but Monahan and Bovell make a few mistakes. The story is largely told from Craven's point of view and wonderfully so. However, at various points, the writers break the point of view to review information not privy to the central character. That kind of exposition spoils the suspense.
Director Martin Campbell (Casino Royale) has a sharp eye for action-thrillers. However, the pacing seems off at times. Partially the blame lies on the writers, but Campbell hasn't helped either by slowing down the pace to focus on Craven's grief. It's great for character development, but when coupled with the slow revelation of pertinent information -- and the audience is way ahead of the plot, having been explained what happened and who was behind it -- the plot feels interminable at times. I find myself saying, "Get on with it already. How dumb is Craven?" The final shift in Craven's attitude also comes a bit too late; although, in all fairness, it is satisfying.
Edge of Darkness is a by-the-book, pretty-good mystery-action thriller. Unfortunately, there's simply not enough edge or darkness to make it very good.Stars: Mel Gibson, Ray Winstone, Danny Huston, Bojana Novakovic, Shawn Roberts, David Aaron Baker, Jay O. Sanders, Denis O'Hare, Damian Young
Director: Martin Campbell
Writers: William Monahan, Andrew Bovell (based on TV series written by Troy Kennedy-Martin)
Distributor: Warner Bros.
MPAA Rating: R for strong violence and language
Running Time: 117 Minutes
Ratings:
Script – 7
Performance – 8
Direction – 6
Cinematography – 7
Music/Sound– 8
Editing – 8
Production – 8
Total – 7.1 out of 10
John Crowley (Brendan Fraser) is a business executive and a father of three; two of his children -- Megan (Meredith Droeger) and Patrick (Diego Velazquez) -- suffer from a genetic disorder called Pompe Disease. The average lifespan for a Pompe patient is about nine years. Following Megan's 8th birthday, she nearly dies. John decides he's not going to sit around to wait for his two children to die.
He does his research and discovers Dr. Robert Stonehill (Harrison Ford), a researcher at the University of Nebraska, is working on a breakthrough theory of enzyme therapy that may help treat Pompe patients. Stonehill is also an antisocial loner. Somehow, John is able to convince Stonehill to go into business with him to develop and market the medicine. John takes a risk by quitting his lucrative position to run the business with Stonehill, whose temper and eccentricity almost kill their chances before they even begin.
Meanwhile, Megan and Patrick are running out of time. Megan's 9th birthday is fast approaching and they still don't have a workable product for clinical trial. Stonehill's personality also alienates the people he works with. John must make sharp and ruthless business decisions to see to it that his children get to live, even at the expense of Dr. Stonehill's career.
Brendan Fraser (Inkheart) has gained some weight to play the everyday businessman who's driven by his love for his children to find a cure. His performance is down to Earth and understated. Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones) seems to have a good time playing a curmudgeon. However, he'd convince me more if he didn't look so neat and act so proper. Sometimes I feel like I'm watching Harrison Ford play doctor.
Keri Russell (August Rush) has a sympathetic role as Aileen Crowley, the mother of these sick children. However, her role is such a side note that she doesn't have much to do. Meredith Droeger (Train Town) is affecting as Megan, the older sibling of the Pompe kids. I really like her understated performance without any obnoxiousness, which a lot of child actors seem to equate as being "cute." Newcomer Diego Velazquez is so adorable as the weaker of the siblings. Sam Hall also tugs at our hearts as the oldest brother of the Crowley family. Jared Harris (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) has a brief but impressionable role as company man Dr. Webber. The real John Crowley also has a small cameo as a venture capitalist.
While the performances are uniformly good, the screenplay by Robert Nelson Jabobs (The Water Horse) is lukewarm, feeling more like a TV movie of the week than a feature. The plot unfolds almost by the book. At times, it tries too hard to tug at our heartstrings. We get it: children plus a fatal disease plus grieving parents equal heart-aching drama. There's no reason to beat us over the head with the sentimentality. The emotions seem more genuine when the characters are just going through their lives, trying to be a normal family.
Unfortunately, a story like this becomes predictable very early on. Granted, it's very interesting to see the struggles John Crowley and Dr. Stonehill go through. However, there's no doubt in our minds that they will succeed, so the suspense at the end (and a small "twist") doesn't really do much for the plot. Surprisingly, though, the story has more to do with corporate and business dealings than family drama. There's just not enough to hold our interest.
Under the direction of Tom Vaughan (What Happens in Vegas), the pace also seems slow. Despite the drama, conflicts and stakes, the story seems to slog along with lethargy. There isn't enough going on in the film, or surprises, to keep the energy level up. As an observation of corporate cultures, it also lacks the sharpness and freshness of something like Up in the Air.
The story is set in 1973, as Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) tells us upfront what exactly has happened to her. She's just a normal, quiet, studious 14-year-old, who has a crush on an Indian boy named Ray (Reece Ritchie), when she is brutally murdered. As first, we don't know who did it and how she died, but as the story unfolds, we realize her neighbor, George Harvey (Stanley Tucci), has been watching her. One day after school, he lures her into an underground shed he's built in the middle of the corn field between her house and the school. When Susie realizes what's going on, it's already too late. Meanwhile, the only person who sees her is classmate Clarissa (Amanda Michalka).
Her parents agonize over her death, and her father, Jack (Mark Wahlberg) tries in vain to find the killer. No one suspects Harvey, however. Jack and his wife, Abigal (Rachel Weisz), also drifts apart when they're grieving for Susie's death. Meanwhile, Susie's sister, Lindsey (Rose Mclver), starts to suspect Harvey as she finds him creepy. Harvey plans to eliminate the problem by killing Lindsey.
Susie is stuck in the "in-between" where she knows what's going on on Earth but she's not ready for heaven yet. She so desperately tries to communicate with her family and tell them what happened to her, and for them to get Harvey for what he did. At the same time, aided by another soul, Holly (Nikki SooHoo), Susie must learn to let it go and accept her own death.
Saoirse Ronan (Atonement) is excellent as Susie. She effectively portrays the naiveté of the young girl, her anguish, shock, and sadness. She makes us care about what happens to the character. However, the role is simply too passive to give Ronan more to do than just reacting to events. Mark Wahlberg (Max Payne) is in good form as the grieving father who tries desperately to find her daughter's killer. Rachel Weisz (The Brothers Bloom) is somewhat reserved and cold as the mother, but that could be the fault of her character and not the actress.
Susan Sarandon (Solitary Man) is a hoot as Susie's boozing, smoking grandmother. She's a comic relief for the heavy movie. Rose Mclever (Rude Awakenings) is fine as Susie's sister, but her character lacks real emotions -- for example, she doesn't seem to be grieving for her sister's death. Amanda Michalka (Super Sweet 16) has a surprisingly minor role as the only person who could see Susie, and Reece Ritchie (Triage) is dashing as Susie's crush, but ultimately does not have much else to do. Nikki SooHoo (Private Practice) gives a touching portrayal of Susie's guide in the "in-between."
The standout, though, is Stanley Tucci (Julie & Julia) as the killer. He went 180˚ from playing Julia Child's benevolent, doting husband to now playing a disturbed, evil serial killer. Tucci is an actors' actor, and his chilling portrayal of a lonely, creepy man should get him an Oscar nomination.
Adapted by Fran Walsh (King Kong), Phillippa Boyens (King Kong) and director Peter Jackson (King Kong), the screenplay is a messy hodgepodge of different things. It's a family story of dealing with grieve and loss, and the violent death of a child. It's also a murder mystery involving one of the most disturbing villains. It's also a fantasy, meditation about the afterlife. And finally, a philosophical and spiritual examination of what death really means. The trouble is, Jackson and his team of writers don't quite know how to fit all those elements and themes into one coherent story. The final product is a disjointed, convoluted patchwork of plot, and character development that is, surprisingly, devoid of genuine emotions. The characters, despite their horrors and agonies, feel stock and clichéd.
The tone and mood also are inconsistent throughout the film. Susan Sarandon's character stands out like a sore thumb because of her comic relief. Sure, humor is need in an otherwise heavy story, but not at the cost of the overall mood and tone. As a murder mystery, the incompetence of the police is grating to watch. As a contemplation of the afterlife, it's not as poignant or profound as What Dreams May Come.
Anna (Amy Adams) seems to have everything she wants: a good job (she stages apartments before they go on the market), a cardiologist boyfriend, and she's on the verge of getting the apartment of her dream. The only thing she's not satisfied with is after four years, Jeremy (Adam Scott) still hasn't proposed. Desperate, she takes to heart of her father's (John Lithgow) story of how her grandma proposed to her grandpa on February 29 -- the only day a woman could propose to a man. So she takes off to Dublin, where Jeremy is having a medical conference, in hopes of getting herself hitched.
Things don't really go her way, though. Her flight gets diverted to Wales and, due to weather, she has no way of reaching Dublin, until she meets Declan (Matthew Goode), an Irish man who owns a pub (and a taxi service!). Declan agrees to take Anna to Dublin for 500 Euros.
Unfortunately, the happy-go-lucky Declan and control-freak Anna don't really get along. She wants everything to go exactly as she plans, and of course she freaks out when they don't. He, on the other hand, is aloof and uninterested. He thinks her whole idea of proposing to her boyfriend is stupid; she thinks it's romantic. And through the few days they're stuck with each other, they discover they have more in common than they thought.
Amy Adams (Julie & Julia) is a good actress as she's proved in Enchanted or Doubt. In this film, however, she's playing another version of the whiny, annoying control freak she did in Julie & Julia. Her performance is somewhat one-note as well, and we don't really get to see enough of what Anna is really about, except during one scene in which she talks about her father. Matthew Goode (Watchmen) is an interesting alternative romantic lead: he's lanky, reserved, and gruff. He has a better time handling the role, however, and he successfully shows us the deep emotional scars (and the facade) of the character. Granted, Adams and Goode do look good together and they feel right as a couple.
Adam Scott (Step Brothers), as Anna's boyfriend, is sort of an Eric Bana-lite, and he has such a small role in the film that he can't really leave an impression. His character is neither good or bad, just not really quite there. I blame it on the screenwriters for not giving his part any depth, however. John Lithgow (Confession of a Shopaholic) is totally wasted as Anna's father. He has only one scene and a peripheral one at that: to tell the pivotal story of "leap year." This could be played by just about any older actor in the world, and Lithgow doesn't have the opportunity to add anything to it. The rest of the cast comprises of mostly Irish actors who do their job well with their minor characters.
The script by Deborah Kaplan (Made of Honor) and Harry Elfont (Made of Honor) is standard and predictable. They basically take a premise and make it into a road trip romance. Well, we've seen better in something like Romancing the Stones. Much of the story is very trite and contrived. The characters also are clichéd. I mean, hmmm, where have we seen this before? A controlling woman who's in a relationship with the wrong man, and a hero who is gruff and uninterested… Ah, we just saw The Proposal (which is a much better film than it seems) and The Ugly Truth. Give us something new already.
Granted, there are some genuinely funny moments, and that's what comedy is all about. Amy Adams and Matthew Goode also work well together, and they have some good bickering scenes. But in general, the story is too derivative and offers little surprises. Also, the leading characters and relationship between them are not well developed enough -- we don't fully buy that they will fall in love in just three days. Certain plot elements stretch credibility. The ending does not work for me, for it's too clichéd and wishful-thinking. A more realistic ending would have served the movie better.
Anand Tucker (Shopgirl) is adequate in directing the film. The location shots are gorgeous and the pacing is brisk. I'd rather he spends more time with the character development, though, instead of getting them from one mayhem to another, but that blame lies squarely on the screenwriters. There's really nothing special about his direction, however. I'd say, he earns his keep by giving us what we expect from the material.
England's Princess Victoria (Emily Blunt) is next in line to take the throne as her uncle, King William, is ailing and has no direct descendants. Because of her age (she is not quite 18 yet), Sir John Conroy (Mark Strong) tries to coerce Victoria to sign over her rights to a regency headed by her mother, Duchess of Kent (Miranda Richardson). But the strong-willed Victoria refuses.
As Victoria becomes of age, young suitors begin to emerge to try to win her heart. One of them is Victoria's first cousin, 20-year-old Albert (Rupert Friend). At first, Albert tries to court Victoria out of obedience to his uncle, King Leopold of Belgium (Thomas Kretschmann), whose sister is the Duchess of Kent. But soon, Albert falls in love with Victoria, who is not too naive to realize her uncle's motives. Meanwhile, Lord Melbourne (Paul Bettany) also tries to woo Victoria and eventually becomes her secretary and advisor.
After King William dies, Victoria quickly becomes Queen. She receives pressure from all sides and her naivete creates friction with the parliament, which sees her as young and inexperienced. She believes her government is out of touch with the people; meanwhile, the people sees her as as threat. She finds confidences in Albert by exchanging letters with him, asking for his advice. Their love grows even as their circumstances keep them apart. Sooner or later, though, Victoria must marry and only she can make the decision.
Emily Blunt (The Wolfman) is radiant, smart and spirited as the young Victoria. At 26, she also looks young enough to play the part. Blunt was the first and only choice for the film and it's a good choice. She understands the character, and is able to portray the famous monarch with a wide range of emotions, while giving her a contemporary feel. Rupert Friend (The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas) is soft-spoken and tender as Albert, the love of Victoria's life. They both light up the screen, especially when they are together. They have a great chemistry with each other.
Paul Bettany (Inkheart) is adequately stoic and reserved as Lord Melbourne, Victoria's suitor, friend, and advisor. He's also obviously much older than Victoria, making us a bit uncomfortable with his intentions. Miranda Richardson (Fred Claus) is excellent as the Duchess of Kent, who may not be mother of the year but certainly loves her daughter as best as she knows how. Mark Strong (Sherlock Holmes) has a brief but intense role as John Convoy, whose lust for power is his own downfall. Jim Broadbent (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) and Harriet Walter (Atonement) are both good as King William and Queen Adelaide respectively.
Written by Julianne Fellowes (Vanity Fair), who is a self-proclaimed expert on Queen Victoria, the screenplay is tight and dramatic, but surprisingly lax on its historical accuracies. Many critics have accused Fellowes for bending historical facts and embellishing events. However, isn't this what drama is about? At its core, Young Victoria is a love story. The historical setting is interesting and the political backdrop serves the purpose of giving the story some relevance. Still, the main focus is the relationship between Victoria and Albert. The film is, in general, romantic in tone and nature because of that.
Director Jean-Marc Vallée (C.R.A.Z.Y.) is not well-known or prolific, but his efforts pays off for The Young Victoria. The pacing is fine and the production is handsome. Because Sarah Ferguson is a producer, the filmmakers were able to shoot the film at various locations including palaces and castles, which give the film a much-appreciated authenticity. Its historical and political settings do at times sway the focus, especially when Albert disappears from the story (except through the letters Victoria wrote him) for an extensive period of time.
Young Victoria is a handsome film with interesting backstories and intrigue. We can enjoy it even if we're not history buffs. Given Blunt's spirited performance and the authenticity of the production, even though the story may not be historically correct, it's a biopic of which Queen Victoria herself might approve with her royal stamp.