Gone, Baby, Gone

Starring: Casey Affleck, Michelle Monaghan, Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris

Directed By: Ben Affleck

Rating: An Adam Favorite

                The truth is something everyone searches for at some point, but the truth and what the person hopes to find are rarely the same thing.

                The truth is exactly what private investigator Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck) is looking for when he sets out to discover the whereabouts of a missing child: Amanda McCready (Madeline O’Brien).  The search for the missing girl leads Kenzie and his partner Angie Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan) into a mystery that loops deeper and deeper toward conspiracy with each new discovery.  The pair is reluctant to take on a case as important as a lost child, but is compelled by the story of the aunt and uncle of the girl.

                Along the way, drugs, kidnapping, murder and lies all become a part of the mix. Helping sort through the mess is a detective assigned to the case, Remy Bressant (Ed Harris) and his captain, Jack Doyle (Morgan Freeman).  Doyle leads a police unit that became dedicated to helping children when Doyle’s 12-year-old daughter was murdered. 

                As the story progresses, the web of deceit becomes more and more tangled, and Kenzie finds that what he has been looking for has not been at all what it seems.  

                In his directorial debut, Ben Affleck turns out no less than one of the best movies of the year.  With the help of an all-star cast, including his younger brother Casey, Affleck presents a suspenseful, mysterious ride that takes the viewer to a place the calm opening narrative would never suggest.    

                The cast was superb in all aspects.  Every minor part was performed with excellent precision, and there isn’t one role in the film that drags the plot or destroys the feeling of absolute realism.  This movie puts you right there with characters, and every ounce of emotion hits home. 

                Affleck’s honest-to-the-core private investigator is by far the most believable character of the film.  Playing a 31-year-old investigator that looks to be in his mid-twenties, Affleck takes flack from everyone he investigates along with the people that are supposed to be helping him.  Whether threatening a group of bar-brawlers or trying to persuade his partner to see things his way, Kenzie is completely sincere.

                Harris and Freeman perform as exceptionally as always; however, one of my favorite things about the movie is that Freeman gets to play a slightly different role than usual.  Freeman still supports his role with the smooth, melodic pitch for which he’s famous, but the character he portrays carries a different weight with a slightly grittier tone. 

                The pace of the film moves as fast as a good episode of “Law & Order”, but the drama seems more real.  The moments of revelation are spread nicely through the movie and always make the viewer realize they don’t really know as much as they believed they knew. 

                At about the halfway point of the film, the viewer is left guessing and suspecting anyone of the worst crimes.  The intricate mystery of a missing child boggles the mind and creates a shield for the viewer to the actions really taking place.  Because of the building suspense, it’s a task for one to think about how the mystery will be resolved. 

                Underlying in the story itself is a message about right and wrong.  Although people may not always agree on right and wrong, each person knows that there is such a thing.  The question is simple enough: are things that once seemed wrong actually right when a child’s life is in danger?