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Mystic River

Mystic River (2003)

tomatometer

87

Average Rating: 7.8/10
Reviews Counted: 194
Fresh: 169 | Rotten: 25

Anchored by the exceptional acting of its strong cast, Mystic River is a somber drama that unfolds in layers and conveys the tragedy of its story with visceral power.

95

Average Rating: 8/10
Critic Reviews: 40
Fresh: 38 | Rotten: 2

Anchored by the exceptional acting of its strong cast, Mystic River is a somber drama that unfolds in layers and conveys the tragedy of its story with visceral power.

audience

86

liked it
Average Rating: 3.7/5
User Ratings: 171,832

My Rating

Movie Info

Directed by Clint Eastwood, the mysterious drama Mystic River is based on the novel by Dennis Lehane and adapted by screenwriter Brian Helgeland. Set in an Irish neighborhood in Boston, Jimmy, Sean, and Dave are three childhood friends who are reunited after a brutal murder takes place. Reformed convict Jimmy Markum (Sean Penn) and his devoted wife Annabeth (Laura Linney) find out that their teenage daughter Katie (Emmy Rossum) has been beaten and killed. Jimmy's old friend Sean Devine (Kevin

R, 2 hr. 17 min.

Mystery & Suspense, Drama

Brian Helgeland, Dennis Lehane

Jun 8, 2004

$90.1M

WB

Mystic River Trailer & Photos

More Photos (19)
More Trailers and Videos (11)

Cast

Critic Reviews for Mystic River

All Critics (196) | Top Critics (40) | Fresh (177) | Rotten (25) | DVD (41)

Sean Penn is so frighteningly good in this movie that he outdoes even the best of his earlier work.

August 7, 2004 Full Review Source: New York Magazine | Comment
Peter Rainer
New York Magazine
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Works as a straight-up detective story, and the acting is often breathtaking.

November 14, 2003 Comment
Bill Muller
Arizona Republic
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Too depressing to fill audiences with delight, but it does seem to validate questionable attitudes, especially an indifference to the suffering of innocent people and a willingness to shoot first and ask questions later.

October 24, 2003 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | Comments (6)
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Solid, rarely showy performances, meticulously recreated detective work and moments of pure unadulterated grief accent this whodunit, a movie that will have those who haven't read the book fooled for much of its length.

October 17, 2003 Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | Comment
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Contains so many layers that you'll want to see it more than once. It's one for the memory books.

October 17, 2003 Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | Comment
Philip Wuntch
Dallas Morning News
Top Critic IconTop Critic

There is depth in this movie, and fine acting. But even more intriguing, there are questions... questions with no clear answers.

October 17, 2003 Comment
Tom Long
Detroit News
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Powerful performances in graphic story. Only 16+.

December 26, 2010 Full Review Source: Common Sense Media | Comment
Nell Minow
Common Sense Media

...every time the events of the plot seem hopelessly lost, the performances come to the rescue. (Blu-ray Edition)

January 24, 2010 Full Review Source: Movie Metropolis | Comment
John J. Puccio
Movie Metropolis

American drama doesn't get any more meaty and muscular than this.

June 13, 2009 Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | Comment
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

To say this is well-acted would be an understatement punishable by law; the acting talent during the film is just magnificent to watch as we see a great cast of great actors...

April 29, 2009 Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | Comment
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed

The performances are uniformly superb.

August 25, 2008 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | Comment
Rob Gonsalves
eFilmCritic.com

Good, occasionally powerful noir that's been overhyped.

August 5, 2007 Full Review Source: Bangor Daily News (Maine) | Comment
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)

Mystic falters occasionally, but I respect its effort and I'm happy to see Mr. Eastwood growing as a director.

July 14, 2007 Full Review Source: Big Picture Big Sound | Comment
Joe Lozito
Big Picture Big Sound

While not quite the equal of the novel, it's more complex, emotionally-charged and better acted than the average Hollywood thriller.

December 30, 2006 Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | Comment
Alan Morrison
Empire Magazine

With characters that don't belong in the film and resolutions that seem mere fantasy, Mystic River never surpasses adequacy.

August 8, 2006 Full Review Source: Oscar Guy | Comment
Wesley Lovell
Oscar Guy

It is in many ways Eastwood's tightest movie for some time, and certainly his darkest since Unforgiven; indeed, the ending offers as corrosive an assessment of the limits of American justice as anything in his career.

June 24, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment
Geoff Andrew
Time Out Source: Time Out

A sprawling story that benefits from Eastwood's stripped-down approach. There are no jive talking Tarantino exchanges here, and no crowd-pleasing pyrotechnics.

December 6, 2005 Full Review Source: Film Threat | Comment
KJ Doughton
Film Threat

This is one of the finer dramas to come down the pike in some time.

June 21, 2005 Full Review Source: FromTheBalcony | Comment
Bill Clark
FromTheBalcony Source: FromTheBalcony

The film births wonderful performances from all three lead actors, as well as Marcia Gay Harden, who's palpable in preternatural ways, Thomas Guiry as the boy in love with Jimmy's daughter, and virtually everyone else with a strip of film time.

May 13, 2005 Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | Comment
Jon Lap
Apollo Guide

It's a stately, handsome-looking studio drama that, for me, never really became emotionally or intellectually involving.

March 5, 2005 Full Review Source: NYC Film Critic | Comment
Ethan Alter
NYC Film Critic

It's a terrific murder mystery, and we can't think of higher praise than that.

February 15, 2005 Full Review Source: Movie City News | Comment
Douglas Pratt
Movie City News

... frustratingly humorless, harsh, and hollow, lacking the cohesiveness, color and convincing characterization of Eastwood's masterpiece Unforgiven.

January 15, 2005 Comment
Jeffrey Overstreet
Looking Closer

Penn and Robbins, especially, are absolutely riveting in this haunting tale of lives lost.

October 16, 2004 Full Review | Comment
Steve Crum
Kansas City Kansan Source: Kansas City Kansan
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Mystic River

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Directed by Eastwood and boasting an all star cast of some of Hollywood's most talented this is a fairly gritty and believable tale with some pretty decent performances all around. A murder mystery, vigilante theme with a built up back story when mixed together make for intense viewing.A film that will no doubt make a

July 28, 2006
76Majikat
Lady D'arbanville

Super Reviewer

Between heartfelt drama and a mystery without the suspense of pure noir, Mystic River is a delayed reaction kind of film. You want to love it right off the bat, and are given good reason with the performances of Penn, Bacon, and Robbins. Still, this plot has none of the true tautness you'd expect of such powerhouse

December 9, 2008
FrizzDrop
Spencer S.

Super Reviewer

Mystic River Quotes

View All

    1. Dave Boyle: Are things looking any better on that Sprite....Sean?
    – Submitted by Jeremy F (2 months ago)
    1. Jimmy Markum: I remember, I was more afraid of my little daughter than I ever was of being in prison.
    – Submitted by Chris P (13 months ago)
    1. Jimmy Markum: We bury our sins here, Dave. We wash them clean.
    – Submitted by Chris P (13 months ago)

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