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| Poster artwork for the crime drama film Gone Baby Gone. |
Searching For Morals by Linh
Ben Affleck makes an impressive directorial debut for his first major feature film, Gone Baby Gone, with his younger brother Casey Affleck in the lead role. Based on Dennis Lehane's novel, Gone Baby Gone sees private detective Patrick Kenzie and his partner Angie Gennaro investigate the disappearance of four year old Amanda McCready, with subplots including corruption in the police force, paedophilia, child molestation and drug abuse.
Ben Affleck makes an impressive directorial debut for his first major feature film, Gone Baby Gone, with his younger brother Casey Affleck in the lead role. Based on Dennis Lehane's novel, Gone Baby Gone sees private detective Patrick Kenzie and his partner Angie Gennaro investigate the disappearance of four year old Amanda McCready, with subplots including corruption in the police force, paedophilia, child molestation and drug abuse.
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| ON THE CASE: Jack Doyle (Morgan Freeman) reluctantly agrees to work alongside Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck) and Angie Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan) in a scene from Gone Baby Gone. Image: Miramax Films. |
Gone Baby Gone is an intense crime thriller which gradually develops into
a display of character challenges and moral ambiguities in searching for the
truth among lies in order to make the right choices.
As with previous Dennis Lehane's novels-to-film such as the Academy Award winning Mystic River, the script remains mostly unaltered and the screenplay from Ben Affleck and Aaron Stockard stays true to the drama, characterisations and storylines.
Gone Baby Gone succeeds with Ben Affleck's astute directing skills and coupled with an intelligent screenplay and brilliant ensemble cast, the film is a quality hit. Set in Dorchester, a rough and tough suburb of Boston, the film has atmospheric character as well as a deeper and seedier underbelly of locals.
As with previous Dennis Lehane's novels-to-film such as the Academy Award winning Mystic River, the script remains mostly unaltered and the screenplay from Ben Affleck and Aaron Stockard stays true to the drama, characterisations and storylines.
Gone Baby Gone succeeds with Ben Affleck's astute directing skills and coupled with an intelligent screenplay and brilliant ensemble cast, the film is a quality hit. Set in Dorchester, a rough and tough suburb of Boston, the film has atmospheric character as well as a deeper and seedier underbelly of locals.
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| QUESTION TIME: Detectives Nick Poole (John Ashton), seated, and Remy Bressant (Ed Harris) interrogate Helene McCready (Amy Ryan) in Gone Baby Gone. Image: Miramax Films. |
Casey Affleck stars as the young and
inexperienced private detective Patrick Kenzie who finds the mystery of
Amanda's disappearance is far more complex than he first thought. Patrick is
faced with a series of moral issues when he finds out the truth surrounding
Amanda's disappearance and the abduction of another young boy leaves him
shocked and disgusted.
Affleck exudes the bravado, insight and curiosity to make Patrick Kenzie believable and watchable.
Amy Ryan has won numerous awards for her portrayal of the drug addicted mother, Helene McCready, in Gone Baby Gone, and was also nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar this year. Helene is a drug mule, drug addict and neglectful mother who cares more about alcohol and partying than for her daughter. Her irresponsible parenting is not disclosed to the media but the police and private detectives discover she is involved in her daughter's abduction. Amy Ryan is a standout as Helene McCready, and convincingly shines as a low life and low class woman who struggles to take care of herself let alone her daughter.
Michelle Monaghan has a pivotal role in the film as well as in the moral issues her partner Patrick Kenzie faces regarding Amanda's abduction. Monaghan's character Angie Gennaro, although childless, is the stark contrast to Amy Ryan's Helene, and shows more concern and regard for the child's safety and welfare than the mother. It's Angie who convinces Patrick to take on the case of Amanda's abduction after pleas from Amanda's aunt Bea (Amy Madigan) and Uncle Lionel (Titus Welliver) .
Ed Harris plays the charming yet sinister police detective Remy Bressant who is assigned the case of Amanda's disappearance along with Detective Nick Poole (John Ashton), and are unimpressed with Patrick and Angie's investigations. Remy strikes a deal with Patrick to work together on the case which leads to the awful truth of Amanda's abduction and the moral dilemmas that follow.
Harris cleverly displays 'good cop' persona in Detective Remy yet enables him to harbour a darker side, showing the ambiguity of human nature and the actions one takes to satisfy their greed and selfishness. There is some sympathy for Remy when we discover his involvement in Amanda's abduction, yet he is ultimately a 'good cop turned bad'.
Morgan Freeman is the Head of the Police Department, Jack Doyle, whose own child was abducted and murdered. Doyle has announced he'll make Amanda's case a priority and is putting his career on the line to ensure she is found and those responsible are brought to justice. Freeman is exceptional in his role that provides the crux of the film's moral ambiguity, whether doing the wrong things for the right reasons make it morally justified.
Madeline O'Brien plays the four year old abductee Amanda McCready, whose cute, pretty and blonde looks bears a striking resemblance to JonBenet Ramsey (murdered American toddler beauty queen) or Madeleine McCann (British girl abducted while her mother was out). Although she appears in only a few scenes, O'Brien is delightful to watch as she plays with her doll or happily sits with Jack Doyle (Morgan Freeman).
Gone Baby Gone contains strong language, offensive behaviour, violence and horrific scenes, yet these do not detract from the intriguing drama and provocative performances from the cast. The ending would leave some audiences dissatisfied with the choices made for Amanda McCready, although it does remind us that we must learn to live with the choices we make in life.
Affleck exudes the bravado, insight and curiosity to make Patrick Kenzie believable and watchable.
Amy Ryan has won numerous awards for her portrayal of the drug addicted mother, Helene McCready, in Gone Baby Gone, and was also nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar this year. Helene is a drug mule, drug addict and neglectful mother who cares more about alcohol and partying than for her daughter. Her irresponsible parenting is not disclosed to the media but the police and private detectives discover she is involved in her daughter's abduction. Amy Ryan is a standout as Helene McCready, and convincingly shines as a low life and low class woman who struggles to take care of herself let alone her daughter.
Michelle Monaghan has a pivotal role in the film as well as in the moral issues her partner Patrick Kenzie faces regarding Amanda's abduction. Monaghan's character Angie Gennaro, although childless, is the stark contrast to Amy Ryan's Helene, and shows more concern and regard for the child's safety and welfare than the mother. It's Angie who convinces Patrick to take on the case of Amanda's abduction after pleas from Amanda's aunt Bea (Amy Madigan) and Uncle Lionel (Titus Welliver) .
Ed Harris plays the charming yet sinister police detective Remy Bressant who is assigned the case of Amanda's disappearance along with Detective Nick Poole (John Ashton), and are unimpressed with Patrick and Angie's investigations. Remy strikes a deal with Patrick to work together on the case which leads to the awful truth of Amanda's abduction and the moral dilemmas that follow.
Harris cleverly displays 'good cop' persona in Detective Remy yet enables him to harbour a darker side, showing the ambiguity of human nature and the actions one takes to satisfy their greed and selfishness. There is some sympathy for Remy when we discover his involvement in Amanda's abduction, yet he is ultimately a 'good cop turned bad'.
Morgan Freeman is the Head of the Police Department, Jack Doyle, whose own child was abducted and murdered. Doyle has announced he'll make Amanda's case a priority and is putting his career on the line to ensure she is found and those responsible are brought to justice. Freeman is exceptional in his role that provides the crux of the film's moral ambiguity, whether doing the wrong things for the right reasons make it morally justified.
Madeline O'Brien plays the four year old abductee Amanda McCready, whose cute, pretty and blonde looks bears a striking resemblance to JonBenet Ramsey (murdered American toddler beauty queen) or Madeleine McCann (British girl abducted while her mother was out). Although she appears in only a few scenes, O'Brien is delightful to watch as she plays with her doll or happily sits with Jack Doyle (Morgan Freeman).
Gone Baby Gone contains strong language, offensive behaviour, violence and horrific scenes, yet these do not detract from the intriguing drama and provocative performances from the cast. The ending would leave some audiences dissatisfied with the choices made for Amanda McCready, although it does remind us that we must learn to live with the choices we make in life.
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| DISCOVERY: Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck), Remy Bressant (Ed Harris), Angie Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan) and Nick Poole (John Ashton) search for Amanda in Gone Baby Gone. Image: Miramax Films. |
Director:
Ben Affleck
Writers: Ben Affleck (screenplay), Aaron Stockard (screenplay), Dennis Lehane (novel)
Cast: Casey Affleck, Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris, Michelle Monaghan, Amy Ryan, Amy Madigan, Titus Welliver, John Ashton, Madeline O'Brien, Edi Gathegi, Michael K. Williams
Producers: Ben Affleck, Sean Bailey, Chay Carter, David Crockett, Alan Ladd Jr., Amanda Lamb, Danton Rissner, Danton Rissner, Aaron Stockard
Original Music: Harry Gregson-Williams
Cinematography: John Toll (Director of Photography)
Film Editing: William Goldenberg
Production: Sharon Seymour (Production Designer), Chris Cornwell (Art Director), Kyra Friedman Curcio (Set Decorator)
Writers: Ben Affleck (screenplay), Aaron Stockard (screenplay), Dennis Lehane (novel)
Cast: Casey Affleck, Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris, Michelle Monaghan, Amy Ryan, Amy Madigan, Titus Welliver, John Ashton, Madeline O'Brien, Edi Gathegi, Michael K. Williams
Producers: Ben Affleck, Sean Bailey, Chay Carter, David Crockett, Alan Ladd Jr., Amanda Lamb, Danton Rissner, Danton Rissner, Aaron Stockard
Original Music: Harry Gregson-Williams
Cinematography: John Toll (Director of Photography)
Film Editing: William Goldenberg
Production: Sharon Seymour (Production Designer), Chris Cornwell (Art Director), Kyra Friedman Curcio (Set Decorator)
Costume Designer: Alix Friedberg
Running time: 1 hour and 54 minutes
Running time: 1 hour and 54 minutes
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