Review of Edge of Darkness (2010) by Michael K — 14 Aug 2017

Edge of Darkness is a conspiracy thriller that just feels...odd. I can't really describe the feeling when I watch this film, I neither love it or hate it...I just feel really mixed. Like it just exists.

Coming hot off of Casino Royale, Martin Campbell revisits the BBC series and turns it into a feature film that incorporates shadowy organisations, conspiracies and vengeance. A good conspiracy leaves you on the edge of your seat, this does not.

..but it's actually rather mature and intelligent. Sure, remove the improbable ending and slow beginning, and what we are left with is a very mysterious plot that I'm certain probably does happen in reality with big governmental organisations (less extreme of course, I'm looking at you Apple!).

Whilst our lead character is playing the detective role and following the bread crumbs so to speak, he is also a father mourning the tragic death of his daughter which definitely brings in some much needed emotion and motive.

Crazy Mel Gibson, who hadn't had a lead role since Signs, plays the Boston detective who...can hear the voice of his deceased daughter and engage in conversations with her...maybe he is crazy after all.

To be fair, he was pretty decent and was able to hold my attention. Ray Winstone was strange casting and didn't really work for me, who plays a shady agent with his own motives. Danny Huston though, always a good choice although slightly underused.

Martin Campbell's directing style felt like it was made for TV, nothing snazzy or spectacular...just functional. Perhaps a well intentioned choice to keep it in the roots of the TV series. Two scenes though, absolutely magnificent or what I like to call "Oh My God" moments.

One involves the detective's daughter and the other a collision with a car. Literally happened out of nowhere and caught me off guard, excellent editing! But still...I feel "meh" even thinking about the film.

It's finely crafted, and utterly watchable if you had nothing to do on a Sunday afternoon. I just don't think I'll ever fully appreciate it. Worth a watch.