Edge of Darkness (2010)

Too much of everything

The Worst Film Ever

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

This movie is a great example of the fact that an actor is made to be good at one or two types of movies and not all.Anyway, Mel Gibson is the actor that knows how to handle the part of David fighting against Goliath and actually win. He did it in Payback, Patriot, Braveheart and so many more. For God's sakes he also did it with aliens in the Omen. Being a good father except from a hero is even better since I believe it's a quality he has in him.Sometimes he is a little over dramatic when he wants to show he gives more than 100% in his effort, but he is still way better than the average father character we see.Apart from Gibson, the story is good even though to much of a conspiracy theory for my taste, and the plot is solid.It is definitely a movie worth watching (at least once).

Continuing my plan to watch every Mel Gibson movie in order I come to Edge Of Darkness (2010)This was the first movie starring Mel Gibson in a leading role in 8 years. And to say a lot had happened in those years is an understatement. He stood by Robert Downey Jr's side during his personal problems and A hate filled rant whilst being pulled for DUI. Apocalypto doing well despite being a tough sell on top of Gibson's scandal was proof audiences will ignore a certain amount of bad behaviour.Plot In A Paragraph: As homicide detective Thomas Craven (Gibson) investigates the murder of his daughter, he uncovers not only her secret life, but a corporate cover-up and government collusion that attracts an agent tasked with cleaning up the evidence.This is a tough one for me to review, as I was a fan of the BBC mini series this is based on. They obviously changed a lot, to fit it into the time constraints of one movie, but it's not bad, it's not great by any means, but it's an above average movie that has a few 'jump' moments in there too. All the supporting cast are fine, and Winstone pops up in possibly my favourite performance from him, but this is Gibson's movie, and for me, in Edge of Darkness, he remains a likable man with a natural screen presence, whose character I didn't have too hard of a time getting behind. Edge Of Darkness grossed $43 million dollars at the Domestic Box Office to end 2010 the 73rd highest grossing movie of the year. So, it wasn't a hit for Gibson.  But it didn't totally bomb either.  If anything, it can probably be viewed as a minor victory, that some (maybe only older action fans) audiences didn't seem to be holding his scandals against him.And the THOSE tapes dropped.

Mel Gibson makes a welcome return to the big screen with this, a remake of an acclaimed BBC miniseries from the 1980s which has the same director in Martin Campbell. I hadn't seen the original version, but I saw that William Monahan was present as screenwriter and after enjoying his previous remake (THE DEPARTED) I thought I'd probably like this one. I was wrong. I didn't just like this – I loved it! This film contains everything I love about thrillers: a conspiracy reaching to the highest levels, sinister guys in black suits and 4x4s with tinted windows always in the background, a lone hero looking for justice, and a few blistering action sequences thrown in for good measure.The story of a father seeking justice for his murdered daughter is nothing new, but the intelligent and literate script breathes life into the tired premise and makes it seem fresh once more. Despite the presence of some brief, decent action (a fight that recalls the one in QUANTUM OF SOLACE and a car stunt that recalls the one in CASINO ROYALE) this is more of a thinking man's thriller as our hero tries to make sense of jigsaw clues and a conspiracy blackout.Gibson has long been one of my favourite presences in Hollywood. His films, whether as director or actor, always seem to have heart and I hope his new Viking movie ends up getting made. He's on top form here as the grieving father, accessing some really dark areas and at the same time providing some touching moments when he sees his daughter before him. The supporting cast is also fine, with stand-out turns from Danny Huston as the slimy suited bad guy and Ray Winstone as an ambivalent figure, the kind who "stops you connecting A to B".The best presence of all is that of Martin Campbell, who directs a film that's extremely polished and well made, with every scene crafted so that it's just right. The climax is inevitable but well handled and it's nice to see the bad guys getting their just deserts in such a well-filmed way. Definitely one of the year's best, this.

What was a passably good thriller turned into a weapons fest and fast car crash to bring Mel Gibson's career back from the dead. Every piece of action totally predictable and all the subtlety of the TV series buried in an orgy of medium calibre weapons and liberal showers of pasta sauce. The plot is lost in endless takes of Mel's suffering face- the nearest he ever gets to any sort of intellectuality. Boys with toys replaces detailed analysis of a sinister cover-up. Winstone is adequate but the original ending with Joe Don Baker slamming together two critical masses of plutonium carries more punch than this yet another gory shoot out. The point is totally lost. About as thrilling and absorbing as steamed dumplings; a flavourless, odourless colourless turkey.