Gone Baby Gone

Very rarely do you come across a movie which makes you think real hard on where you stand, which side you are on. In the recent past, "Million Dollar Baby" made me question my stand on death and euthanasia. Ben Affleck's directorial venture "Gone Baby Gone" raises another moral question, this time its about "Life".

I had no idea what to expect before watching the movie, and I must say that ignorance paid off. I knew it was a story about a little girl gone missing. It is about that and much more. Without giving much of the storyline away, the movie is about two private detectives who get involved in the search of a missing girl from a rundown Boston neighborhood and then how this impacts their professional and personal lives.


Ben Affleck filmed this movie on location in Dorchester. He used people from the neighborhood to play small parts in the movie and this creates an atmosphere of being there, walking and living amongst the lives of those people. This makes the neighborhood a character in itself which is so essential for such a story. The cast gives a very sharp performance - Ed Harris, Amy Ryan, Michelle Monaghan and Morgan Freeman - watch for one scene where the Morgan Freeman character looks out of a car window and the camera stays for about 2 seconds on his face, those eyes and that expression convey volumes - it will stab our heart. The real find however is Casey Affleck. Ben's little brother makes "Medium Patrick Kenzie" his own - he lives and he breathes the part to perfection. His baby face vulnerability and his fearless demeanour are in such contrast with each other, it works wonders.


In the end the movie does not try to answer the moral question it raises. It asks you to take a side just like Angie and Patrick in the movie. Ben Affleck, every bad movie you did - Jersey Girl, Daredevil - we forgive you - yes, even "Gigli" is forgiven.

Parental Warning: There is foul language abound, shocking sudden bursts of violence and extensive drug usage.