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Movie:		9.0
Picture:		8.0
Sound:		10.0
Extras:		5.0
Score:		8.0

Director(s):	Clint Eastwood
Writer(s):	Dennis Lehane (novel), Brian Helgeland (screenplay)
Starring:	Emmy Rossum • Kevin Bacon • Laura Linney • Laurence Fishburne • Marcia Gay Harden • Sean Penn • Tim Robbins
Genre:	Drama
Website:	http://mysticrivermovie.warnerbros.com/
Release Date:	February 02, 2010
Rated:

List Price:	Blu-ray - $17.99
Amazon:

Clint Eastwood’s masterpiece is revamped allowing the audience to experience a new meaning to the term “on the edge of your seat”.  A classic in the works, Mystic River was released seven years ago in 2003, creating a stir amongst critics.  Rightfully so, as in the end Mystic River went home with two Oscars, Best Actor Sean Penn and Best Supporting for Tim Robbins, as well as a bundle of other awards throughout the season.  Mystic River is based upon the tragic novel by Dennis Lehane of the same name.  Lehane also wrote the story of another great flick, Gone Baby Gone as well as the upcoming soon-to-be favored Shutter Island, directed by Martin Scorsese.

The enhanced audio on the opening scene is thrilling, allowing the audience to predict the ride they’re about the go on.  Tim Robbins' character, Dave Boyle, is first taken away by posing cops as a youngster and lead to an underground layer where he is sexually abused for days.  The flashes in this short scene are terrifying and in his escape you are brought along with him in a heartbreaking scene prefacing what is to come in this two hour and change tale.

The visuals are as expected for a Blu-ray and as said the sound is what is to be commended.  However, a sound I was not too fond of is the various accents that River’s stellar cast created.  In what is supposed to be working class Boston, the accent of Laura Linney’s character, Annabeth, is somewhat Irish in tone.  Tim Robbins and Kevin Bacon create a semi audible Boston accent whereas Sean Penn masks his recognizable voice with a few influx changes, nothing to be commended or appreciated by the Irish Catholic town of Boston.

Within the two hours River has to offer, the audience is wary as to if they should root for Dave Boyle (Robbins) or be bone chillingly terrified of him.  Eastwood really knows how to create such characters, for an example we can refer to his character in Gran Torino, a terrifying retiree turned tragic hero.

Mystic River’s Blu-ray has a low price tag being that it is less than a new release.  In this case it is highly recommended to go on a second ride of one of Eastwood’s most commendable and heart breaking works.

Blu-ray Bonus Features

I was very disappointed in the bonus features in this disc.  After all these years one may think the studio would have enough time to gather up footage to make a second purchase well worthwhile.  I actually wouldn’t have minded seeing Penn and Robbin’s Oscar acceptance speeches but apparently this footage was too much for a trillion dollar company to purchase the rights to.  The only features on the disc is a Bravo TV Special “Mystic River Page to Screen”, which we all saw years ago, and a borderline interesting-series of Charlie Rose interviews with Kevin Bacon, Tim Robbins and Clint Eastwood.  Of course there is also your run of the mill play by play given to you by Eastwood and Robbins, but Eastwood’s scratchy voice is too much to bear for two hours.