Gone Baby Gone
Ben Affleck gives the spotlight to his brother Casey- you know him as one of the brothers in the “Ocean” flicks- his first time out as director (his first time as co-writer since his Oscar for “Good Will Hunting”), but Ben steals the show. Make no mistake, Casey is sensational as Patrick, a young private detective in Boston who is hired (along with his girlfriend/assistant Michelle Monaghan) by the sister of a druggie mother whose daughter is kidnapped, capping a breakout year that also includes a memorable turn as the man who shot a legend in “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.” But Ben- working with co-writer Aaron Stockard from the novel by Dennis Lehane (whose “Mystic River” was brought to life with equal vividness by Clint Eastwood)- shows a keen eye behind the camera for characterization and mood. It’s his most exciting film project in years- if he gets another chance behind the camera, we could be seeing the emergence of another Eastwood-like talent behind the camera.
Maybe that’s too high of praise after one film, and maybe Affleck’s Boston roots are a big reason for his success with this story- who better than a native to bring a city to life onscreen. But there’s too strong a melding of story, theme, mood (enhanced by the cinematography by John Toll and music by Harry Gregson-Williams, hitting a dramatic peak in his work here), and performance at work here to dismiss as beginner’s luck. All this, and I haven’t even mentioned excellent work by Ed Harris as the detective on the case and Morgan Freeman as the officer in charge of the BPD’s department for missing children- old pros continuing to pull new tricks out of their sleeves. But they can’t change the fact that this is a showcase for the brothers Affleck- just bring their A-game out of respect of their director and co-star siblings.
