Clint Eastwood directed mystery Mystic River is a dark and challenging film that puts some great performances into a very sad and depressing story.  It is extremely well done and the film is a sophisticated character drama.

Three men, Dave (Tim Robbins) Jimmy (Sean Penn) and Sean (Kevin Bacon), who were friends in their youths, come back together when Jimmy’s 19 year old daughter is murdered.  Sean is a police officer on the case while Dave has been struggling his entire life from a childhood trauma.  Because of that, he becomes a prime suspect, especially from Sean’s partner Whitey (Laurence Fishburne).

There are a lot of psychological things going on around with Dave, and Tim Robbins is amazing here.  You are never sure exactly what is going on with him and you may not be sure whether or not he was a killer.

Jimmy has a criminal background and has connections to the underworld.  His grief over the loss of his daughter was palatable and this was another great performance.

The film is a moody masterpiece and one of Eastwood’s best films in years.