Review of Stillwater (2021) by Rebecca31 — 15 Aug 2021

You could be forgiven for thinking this is one of those Liam Neeson-esque movies where he punches his way through all the bad guys in order to rescue his daughter/wife etc. Stillwater is a much more toned down movie than the trailer would have you believe.

Bill (Matt Damon) flies out to Marseilles to visit his estranged daughter Allison (Abigail Breslin) who is currently in prison for the murder of a college student she was sharing an apartment with. Allison is insistent she did not commit this crime and is trying to get the investigation reopened. Bill is determined to prove his daughter’s innocence and starts some of his own investigation into a possible new lead. He soon realises that as an American navigating his way through Marseilles with the language barrier and culture shock is more difficult than he imagined. If you feel this idea rings a bell, it is very loosely based on a real life case, there are some similarities but Stillwater has no “based on true events” quote at any point nor does it claim to have any connection with real life events.

There’s a few themes running at once, and it’s drifting between family drama and legal thriller. Damon’s character particularly as the out of place American going through a journey as he spends more time in Marseilles and develops a friendship with Virginie (Camille Cottin). Bill could have been a difficult character to pull off and have the audience sympathize with and care about. With a different actor it could have been a disaster but Damon was 100% the right choice. I liked Stillwater for the most part but at almost 2 hours and 20 minutes, it’s far too long for this type of film. It’s very drawn out and a bit dull in places. There was no need for it to drag on so much and could have easily lost 20 minutes. That aside the performances from Damon, Breslin and Cottin are the strongest thing you can take from Stillwater and really hold the film together. Recommended.