Review of Edge of Darkness (2010) by Jhon E — 14 Nov 2010

Edge of Darkness, this is another tricky film to review. This film is not exactly your typical thriller, but it isn't far away from being so. This film isn't great, but its ambitious plot, great acting from Mel Gibson and violence desperately pushes this film away from rotten. The film is like most revenge thrillers. I must say I was surprised with high amount of violence. Mainstream films don't tend to have a lot of violence, unless it is a renowned horror, and even then the production companies cut some scenes so it gets a larger audience. The films violence was surprisingly strong and frequent, although there isn't a lot of gore. This didn't necessarily make me enjoy the film any more, but it certainly separated it more from the generic thriller.

The film follows Craven played by Mel Gibson. He is a detective and his teenage daughter visits him, after a little while and a lot of blood noses and vomiting, she is brutally killed on his front porch. Mel Gibson then obviously starts to investigate his daughter's death. The plot may sound familiar, yet there are some new instalments to the thriller genre, nothing wild, but a few differences. He film takes more charge when it is linked to a company that develops nuclear arms, yet the film feels shrouded by the usual protracted conversations with strangers. It soon becomes quite confusing and you tend to lose interest, but just listen to a sentence or two to keep up.

Mel Gibson was very good. Obviously no Kevin Spacey in American Beauty, but I was certainly surprised. I'm not really a fan of his work, I saw Brave Heart once, but I can't really remember as I was younger and had no passion for films as such. So it would be unfair to dismiss him, but I liked his work here, and I enjoyed Apocalypto. Many of you may not like Mel for his recent and past antics. I personally don't really care, but I can understand a lot of people not liking the film, because of him.

Overall, the film is another thriller, with a little bit of spice, which is purely based on action, the ambitious plot and Mel Gibson's fine role and performance. The film isn't great, but it is hard to say it is a horrible film. I would recommend it to any action junkie, and a thriller lover. I can imagine the general public liking it, but if you are looking for a plot well executed, this is not the film for you. More of a film you watch on a Saturday night with your parents and siblings, with no attempt to challenge yourself. An ok film if you try not to think about it too much.