Directed by Sean Penn
Based on the book by Friedrich Dürrenmatt
Screenplay by Jerzy Kromolowski and Mary Olson-Kromolowski
Starring
- Jack Nicholson as Jerry Black
- Aaron Eckhart as Stan Krolak
- Robin Wright-Penn as Lori
Jonny sez The Pledge is one of the more engrossing and affecting DVDs you are going rent. Like Penn's other directorial outings, The Crossing Guard and the Indian Runner, he takes a simple morality tale where you know the ending within twenty minutes and stretches it out into a richly textured descent into what being human, or at least an overwhelmed, powerless American male, is all about.
Lets start with the cast. In addition to Nicholson, who you actually from time to time forget is Jack Nicholson, his performance being that dynamic, an A list of actors was assembled for this picture. Seans wife, Robin Wright Penn, Aaron Eckhart, the venerable and great Harry Dean Stanton, Sam Shepard, Mickey Rourke and Benicio Del Toro to just wet your appetite. All of who perform wonderfully and convincingly.
Jacks character, Jerry Black is a retiring detective that gets himself embroiled in one last case. A little girl is brutally raped and murdered. Jerry decides to stay on the case because of a promise to the little girls mother, a little cheesily portrayed by Patricia Clarkson. That is the lone bad scene in the movie. Even though the case seems to be wrapped up, Detective Black believes the truth is a bit more sinister. He thinks they are dealing with a serial predator and takes it upon himself to bring out the truth. But this is no Dirty Harry flick. The truth does not come easily, and along the way Sean Penn forces us to deal with a wide gamut of themes including, duty, fatherhood, civil behavior and love, to name a few. The most interesting (And obvious theme) is that of redemption. Specifically, redemption at what cost? Is alienating every single person in your life to prove a point worth it? Without giving anything else away, the ending is simply brilliant.
The setting of the movie is also interesting. There is a special starkness and discomfort, which is gained cinematically by placing a bunch of white folks in a snow covered environment. Affliction, A Simple Plan and The Sweet Hereafter all come to mind. All of these movies, including The Pledge are laden with a general all-pervasive creepiness. Though, this movie being the emotional toboggan run that it is, (Didnt say roller coaster ride!) gets nicely broken up by other types of scenery which change up the feel. Plus, what was the last movie you ever watched set in Reno? All of this adds up to some intense and prolonged suspense, with that creepy, uneasy feeling being present from the get go. It builds right up until the end.
The Pledge is a gem, and you will actually feel better about yourself for renting it. Unlike say, Rambo, which has to be enjoyed in secret.
Erich sez
I cant really get my finger on The Pledge. There are fantastic moments of drama and suspense, but they are sometimes diluted with weirdness. When Jerry has to break the news to a couple that their daughter has been murdered, he does so in a sea of turkeys. Theres a effective moment of panic when it looks like a girl might have been abducted, but it is interrupted by a goofy, Sam Raimi zoom on a clown having a cigarette. You forget the tension and think, "what the fuck?"
Maybe Penn is trying to undermine clichs or pass up easy marks. Any competent director with decent actors can deliver a heart wrenching scene in which parents learn that their child has been murdered. Maybe Penn is trying to do it with one hand tied behind his back.
More often, Penn effectively plays it straight, as with a scene in which the body is discovered by a horrified boy. The terror and shock of the situation are conveyed flawlessly.
The plot is engrossing and flows fairly well. However, the story becomes implausible at times--particularly when Jerry is less than vigilant in protecting a young girl in his charge during her interaction with Jackson who, at the time, looks quite likely to be the killer. In spite of its flaws,
The Pledge has most of what you look for in a dramatic thriller: a great cast doing a great job, a good and somewhat unpredictable story and moments of real suspense.
