Please don't read if you haven't seen the movie. I finally got around to seeing this film on DVD this weekend. I went in without any expectations but a couple friends's warnings that it's a downer and has a dis-satisfying ending. I think it is one of the best films I've seen in a while. In fact, I think it should have bumped Michael Clayton for a Best Picture Oscar nomination.
It felt like an old-fashioned movie. No dwelling on gore, no sex and no shoe-horned romance subplot. The movie is all about reactions and choices. I cheered, I gasped, and clutched my head. The ending isn't necessarily dis-satisfying but it's tough to wrestle with.
Over time, my opinion has changed. My initial reaction was leave the girl with the ex police chief. But the character who convinced me that is the wrong choice was the girlfriend who argued for leaving the child with the chief. All her reasoning rang hollow because it was based upon classist assumptions. Sure, the little girl would have good schooling and everything she ever wanted but that is not a guarantee against misery and abuse. Who knows that the ex chief isn't a pedophile or a drunk? No one bothers to wonder because he's well-off and living in the suburbs.
But on the flip side, I don't think the over-riding mantra that a child belongs with his/her parents should trump all arguments. The mother isn't painted as 100% villain whether that's good storytelling or acting, I can't decide. She obviously has issues but not enough issues to steal someone else's child.
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