Gone Baby Gone
I'm usually skeptical when actors decide to get behind the camera, so this one caught me by surprise.
It's always hard for me to come up with an answer when people ask me what kinds of movies I like. I love movies of all kinds, all genres, and all styles. But if I make a list of my favorite films, one consistency stands out. I seem to really like movies with ambiguous endings. I hate it when movies spell everything out or neatly tie up all the loose ends. (For example, I think Shawshank Redemption would be a much better film if it ended on the shot of the bus driving away.)
Without spoiling anything, I can say that Gone Baby Gone gets it right. I absolutely love that the movie does not draw clear lines between right and wrong or good and evil. And while the movie does spell out what probably lies in the characters' futures, it doesn't judge the characters and takes no sides on the issue of whether the main character ended up making the right decision. That's left up for the viewers to debate. I actually think he makes the wrong decision, but I could debate that with myself for hours. And stimulating debate is exactly what a movie like this should do.
It's a fine line. Watching those final scenes from a filmmaking perspective is like watching someone successfully walk a tightrope strung between two skyscrapers on a windy day. Not bad for a guy whose only other directing credit is this film!
It's always hard for me to come up with an answer when people ask me what kinds of movies I like. I love movies of all kinds, all genres, and all styles. But if I make a list of my favorite films, one consistency stands out. I seem to really like movies with ambiguous endings. I hate it when movies spell everything out or neatly tie up all the loose ends. (For example, I think Shawshank Redemption would be a much better film if it ended on the shot of the bus driving away.)
Without spoiling anything, I can say that Gone Baby Gone gets it right. I absolutely love that the movie does not draw clear lines between right and wrong or good and evil. And while the movie does spell out what probably lies in the characters' futures, it doesn't judge the characters and takes no sides on the issue of whether the main character ended up making the right decision. That's left up for the viewers to debate. I actually think he makes the wrong decision, but I could debate that with myself for hours. And stimulating debate is exactly what a movie like this should do.
It's a fine line. Watching those final scenes from a filmmaking perspective is like watching someone successfully walk a tightrope strung between two skyscrapers on a windy day. Not bad for a guy whose only other directing credit is this film!