I’m a bit hit or miss with the films Clint Eastwood has directed. I liked “Unforgiven,” his 1992 Oscar winner. But he’s made a string of movies that I find too obvious in their themes and messages. And I found the final ending to ”Million Dollar Baby” rather unbelievable.

For the most part, I would say the bad outweighs the good. But, then I have to consider that he directed “Mystic River,” which is one of the best films ever made.

Based on a Dennis Lehane novel (which I really should read), the setup is as follows. Three (presumably Irish) kids in a rough Boston neighborhood are accosted by a man presenting himself as a cop. One of the kids is taken away and, let’s just say the man was not a cop and that boy undergoes four days of hell in a concrete basement before escaping. The film just then picks up twenty-plus years later and all three boys are now men. Kevin Bacon‘s character is a detective, Sean Penn’s character is a convenience store owner with a criminal past, and Tim Robbins character is the grown-up boy who escaped the terrors.

When Sean Penn‘s daughter is found dead, Kevin Bacon’s character and his partner, played by Lawrence Fishburne are on the case. Multiple suspects appear, including, perhaps, Tim Robbins.

The plot is all well and good, but it’s really the acting that seals the deal. We’re talking about a cast that is four of the top actors of the past half century. Sean Penn should’ve been given six Oscars just for his grief-stricken scream when he finds out his oldest daughter has been murdered.

My beef with a lot of Eastwood films is they play out with a kind of moral simplicity–the good guys are obviously good, even when they’re somewhat flawed, and the bad guys are bad. Not so here; Eastwood is quite comfortable stewing in the gray areas.

There’s not much else I can say. Get off your keister and watch it!