A little girl has been abducted, it’s been three days and the concerned Aunt and Uncle have turned to a local private investigator Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck) and his partner Angie Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan) to help the police in investigating the case. Gone Baby Gone is gritty, dark, and full of the usual directives on where to look. Through this it provides an inner dilemma that challenges the laws and morals of what we believe to be right, and to leave us with a different outlook on life that few films have the power to do.
Gone Baby Gone starts with the personalised narrative of Patrick, (the film’s main protagonist), as he introduces us to his neighbourhood. His childhood in growing up here, and the ups and downs of this world and its level of familiarity. You follow his lead so directly in the film, that it’s almost from a first-person perspective; in scenes of violence you feel Patrick’s rush of adrenalin, his sweat and the dizzying anxiety of where to turn, where to look and can you run fast enough?
To begin with Patrick is viewed as being a slob, his office cluttered within his tiny flat, while his partner in the firm, Angie, is also his girlfriend. He seems inefficient and having the luck of landing the investigative role due to his local connections, however it quickly becomes apparent both to the police and the audience that this is incorrect. The film showing glimpses of his capabilities whilst not flaunting them, leaving you to wonder if he’ll find the missing girl.
Not giving us an inch to breathe, the director, Ben Affleck, presses down the urgency and responsibility placed on his lead character in finding the missing girl. The full weight of which is shown as Patrick delves straight into search and rescue mode, rushing to meet the girl’s family. Her situation and vulnerability being further heightened in a nice touch of first impressions that will later echo back to the audience in a presented choice of decisions. For the missing girl’s mother, Helene McCready (played by Amy Ryan), is incredibly neglectful and very self-centred, and as the film progresses she is painted in a less than flattering light. However, Gone Baby Gone has the magic to do a 180 on the perspectives it casts; the mother changing from cold-heartedness to showing more remorse for her actions, and a regret of not being a better mother as the threat to her child deepens.
Amy Ryan captures the camera throughout her performance as the mother, not pulling-back on any acting punches and leaving the viewer so mesmerised by her attitude as to forget there is anyone else in the room with her. Gone Baby Gone boasts a stella cast throughout, especially in the casting of the police department; from Captain Jack Doyle played by Morgan Freeman – who can really do no wrong in his choice of movie roles, and always shines brightest when placed in an authoritative position – to the two police detectives assigned the case, Remy Bressant (Ed Harris) and Nick Poole (John Ashton), who end up working alongside Patrick and Angie. The most dynamic and interesting scenes of the film being between Patrick and Remy, with Ed Harris beautifully playing the tensions like guitar strings.
The film’s primary plot of a little girl’s abduction soon widens to have more turns, and ever-expanding directions that’ll have you reaching for the remote to catch up, so pay close attention, and maybe have subtitles on? The Boston accents being so particularly heavy that most of the words turn into mumbles, unless they’re shouting that is. The pacing of Gone Baby Gone is never rushed however, and through this steadiness it’s able to deliver as much content as a TV series, the storyline being well developed. Halfway into the film there is even a sort of intermission giving the audience time to reflect, and to engage with its dark and weighty issues. Its portrayal of the frightening situations families may find themselves in is never glamourised, moving instead from being handled delicately to the harsh harrowing light of the media and its scrutiny.
Gone Baby Gone is a high-stakes case with the deadly result of leaving you to wonder – where exactly does the line of wrong exist?
Director & Writer: Ben Affleck
Other notable works:
- The Last Duel 2021
- City on a Hill 2019 –
- Bending the Arc 2017
- Argo 2012
- The Town 2010
- Good Will Hunting 1997
Writer: Aaron Stockard
Other notable works:
- The Town 2010
Based on the novel: Gone, Baby, Gone by Dennis Lehane
