Dorchester, one of the toughest neighborhoods in all of Boston, is no place for the weak or innocent. It's a territory defined by hard heads and even harder luck, its streets littered with broken families, hearts and dreams. When one of its own, a 4-year-old girl, goes missing, private investigators Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck) and Angela Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan) don't want the case. But after pleas from the child's aunt, they open an investigation that will ultimately risk everything – their relationship, sanity and lives – to find a lost little girl.
Without a doubt one of the most overlooked, if not the most overlooked movie, director, and leading men of 2008. "Gone Baby Gone" rips your heart out and asks your conscience to decide between right and wrong on issues you have never been confronted with. There are conflicts inside each of us, "Gone Baby Gone" asks us to face our conflicted conscience and choose sides. Casey affleck is directed brilliantly by his brother Ben Affleck, who seems to capture the raw emotion of the Boston streets where good is good, bad is bad, and everything in between is "salt of the earth" hard working people that live with it all and never say a word.
It is clear that Ben Afflecks future is behind the camera, but Casey Afflecks future (lets hope) is just beginning. Fresh off of two gripping performances ( The assassination of Jesse James, and this movie) lets hope that his next script choices are not only better than his brothers, but he picks roles that show more of his dramatic layers. Morgan Freeman, and Michelle Monaghans acting is unscrupulous, but the real story is the undiscovered and untold history of Casey Afflacks character Patrick Kenzie. Guessing his story is why you should see this movie.
Rated "R"
See Also: Good will Hunting, Layer Cake, Crash
