KDL Recommends

Mystic River

ISBN: 0790780372

Title: Mystic River

Author: Best Actor - Sean Penn (2003)

KDL Description:

Boston childhood friends Jimmy, Sean and Dave are reunited after a brutal murder. Reformed convict Jimmy and his wife Annabeth find out that their teenage daughter Katie has been beaten and killed. Jimmy’s old friend Sean is the homicide detective assigned to the case. Jimmy and Sean soon suspect their pal Dave, who harbors some disturbing secrets of his own.

Amazon Description:

Superior acting, writing, and direction are on impressive display in the critically acclaimed Mystic River, Clint Eastwood’s 24th directorial outing and one of the finest films of 2003. Sharply adapted by L.A. Confidential Oscar-winner Brian Helgeland from the novel by Dennis Lehane, this chilling mystery revolves around three boyhood friends in working-class Boston—played as adults by Tim Robbins, Sean Penn, and Kevin Bacon—drawn together by a crime from the past and a murder (of the Penn character’s 19-year-old daughter) in the present. These dual tragedies arouse a vicious cycle of suspicion, guilt, and repressed anxieties, primed to explode with devastating and unpredictable results. Eastwood is perfectly in tune with this brooding material, giving his flawless cast (including Laura Linney, Marcia Gay Harden and Laurence Fishburne) ample opportunity to plumb the depths of a resonant human tragedy, leading to an ambiguous ending that qualifies Mystic River for contemporary classic status. —Jeff Shannon