Platicsco Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Scarlet The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

smittydog66 I thought Gone Baby Gone was an absolutely brilliant movie. I thought the cast was great, storyline was awesome. Casey Affleck is a great actor and Ben is a really good Director. I would highly recommend this movie. The ending of the movie? What would you do?

slackline70 Without actually giving away the ending of the movie, I will say that I hated it. In my 49 years, never have I agonized so much over the fate of fictional characters.However, I will also say that the ending is what elevates Gone Baby Gone from simply being a well-made if forgettable thriller to an absolutely unforgettable masterpiece.The movie has the guts to pose a question I asked myself every single day in my early 20s when I worked as a counselor in a group home for troubled kids - "does everyone have the right to raise their own child?"Every single day I asked that question - and every single day I didn't like the answer.I also didn't like the ending of Gone Baby Gone - but I would have never respected or appreciated the movie the way I do if it had been any different.9 stars - to a movie with the courage to give us an ending we didn't want.

fdiallo33 Our choices make our realities, either good or bad. The question is; what is really good or bad? Is the world black or white? Can there be grey areas? These are the type of questions you will be asking yourself after watching this magnificent film.Gone Baby Gone is based on Dennis Lehane's Mystic River. It follows two Boston private investigators that are given the case of missing 4-year old Amanda McCready. During the investigation, the private investigators work with Boston detectives in hope of finding Amanda alive and well.To my shocking, this film marks the directorial debut of Ben Affleck. I have to say, he did more than a great job. Ben's brother, Casey Affleck, and Michelle Monaghan star as the private investigators. They both were authentic in their acting. The acting all around was very realistic which I believe is vital to this story.Speaking of realistic, the montages of urban Boston were extremely authentic. The extras used looked like they lived in the streets of Boston their whole life. This really made me feel the story was real and I was watching it unfold right before my eyes.The writing in this film is wonderful. It kept me on edge and had me thinking, there has to be more, something just doesn't seem right. The actors did a great job of portraying the story line. I like how despite Casey being a "young looking fellow" and presumably under qualified, according to the detectives, he had the guts to question everything, even when it could cost him his life.Overall this is a great mystery that you deserve to unfold. This film questions morality and exploits human behavior. I loved this film and I bet you will too.

Screen_Blitz Ben Affleck has shed beautiful light on his talent as an actor on screen. But about his talent behind the camera? Making his directorial debut, Affleck crafts a dark and twisted tale about every parent's worst nightmare: the kidnapping of a child. Packed with unexpected twists and powerful emotional resonance to keep the heart pounding to its very last breath, Gone Baby Gone is an uncomfortably profound experience that dares to leave you convinced of the unsettling events that unfold on screen, the opening minutes of exposition, to the shocking twist of moral dilemmas and the blurred lines between right and wrong. By no means is this a comfortable picture to sit through. It is dark, grisly story where the moments are levity are as scarce as water in the desert. After all, the events are inspired by the novel of the same name by Dennis Lehane who also wrote 'Mystic River'. Set in Boston, the director's hometown, this film follows Patrick Kenzie (played by Casey Affleck, Ben's younger brother) and Angie Gennaro (played by Michelle Monaghan), two private detectives who are hired by Lionel (played by Titus Welliver) and Bea McCready (played by Amy Madigan) to go under investigation for their missing four-year-old niece Amanda, initially against the will of her drug-addicted mother (played by Amy Ryan). As the two dive deeper and deeper into the investigation, they are confronted with suspicious secrets involving local drug dealers, gang members, and the local law enforcement that leaves them questioning everything they about this case. Thanks to Ben Affleck, this is a mystery/thriller that avoids following the tracks of a straightforward narrative, but instead drives its stories through misdirection and moral ambiguity to leave you questioning every character involved with this case. Although the story takes a while to pick up with its slow exposition during the first half, it powerfully builds up the layers of the characters and sets up for the rigid complexity of the story. Much of this pays off during the final stretch when the lead character Patrick and Angie are forced to confront against the demons that threaten their moral pedestals. And Affleck captures the events with pure grit and emotional magnitude with just enough tension leave viewers shivering in their seats. Setting the action in the middle-class Boston is perhaps no surprise as Affleck knows the town very well, but he also uses this location to great advantage by capturing the dour environment of a place riddled with crime, drugs, and prostitution. Once the events finally reach a conclusion, there is still a sense of uncertainty underlined by moral ambiguity of the characters. At the end, viewers are likely to find themselves divided on whether the character made the right decision or not. It comes to show that no goods come without punishment. As for Casey Affleck, he puts on a great performance. Though nothing I would consider Oscar-worthy, it effectively shows he has the acting chops he rarely gets the demonstrate unlike his older brother. Michelle Monaghan makes good use of her talent as well. Again, nothing that shouts for Oscars. Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris, unsurprisingly put on blissful performances. Arguably the most profound display in the roster is Amy Ryan who makes a convincing impression of a mother with a low-life persona who nonetheless is anxious of finding her daughter, even though her volatile personality does little to show it. The movie never lets any of its inspiring stars go to waste. Gone Baby Gone is a profoundly riveting mystery/thriller with a patent of powerhouse performances, an uncompromising package of snappy twists and turns, and a surprisingly strong directorial efforts by Ben Affleck. It is not a pretty picture, it is a dark one bound to leave even the most desensitized viewers squirming in their seats. Bloody is also a word not worth leaving out. Above all, it proves Affleck has just as much charismatic talent behind the camera as does in front.