Rating: - Garbage never looked so awful.
What a horrible story. There was no satisfaction watching this movie. It was a very poor piece of storytelling. I won't even dare look at the book. It was long. It was slow. It felt like nothing was happening.

The actors and actresses in this movie, while great in many others I've seen them in, were just pitiful. The awful Brooklyn accents were probably the best thing in this movie (I absolutely loathed the accents). Seriously, have any of them listened to someone from Brooklyn? In a word, the accents were butchered.
The movie is replete with pointless red herrings. When you finally learn what really happened...what a huge letdown! I expected more. I don't want to spoil anything (actually, I do, just so no one bothers with this junk), but it was seriously ridiculous.
Like I said before, there is no satisfaction watching this movie. It will not make you feel good. It does not give you any sense of hope or closure that things are all right. Basically, this movie portrays the fact that life is full of Hell and we're all just jacked for being here.
Why would anyone consider this worthwhile? Perhaps it resembles life as it really is. But who in the world wants that? We create and listen and read and watch stories to escape the horrors of this world. There are no morals we learn at the end. There is no brighter tomorrow. There is no land of the rainbow, mostly because the rainbow would be jacked up in this movie. The bad guys would tear it to bits just because it was in their way.
They call it Mystic River. Mystic, because any semblance of decency is beyond our understanding; River, because that's where this junk belongs. So, if you're looking to rip your hair out, watch this movie. I can't even fully describe the taste of bile lingering in my mouth after seeing this.

Awful. Putrid. Vile. Filth.

Rating: - You Don't Gain Anything From Watching This Movie
I have not read the book, so I cannot comment on that aspect. However, I didn't feel like I learned anything about humanity or the human condition from watching this movie. If you invest this much time in watching something, you hope to feel even just a little bit wiser when it's finished. The characters acted predictably and stayed "true" to their stereo-typical character types. No surprises. The 2 stars are for the relatively good acting and for the directing. Overall, though, watching it was a waste of time.

---

Rating: - Great Performances Worth Seeing
Particularly in the beginning of the movie as *spoiler*, we learn a girl has died. The reaction of her father and mother is just incredibly believable and something I will remember about this film. Hand him a reward for that and the rest.

The pedo-killer had me thinking he's crazy, and I've seen crazy. Maybe not killer crazy, but I've seen sick people. Again, a very convincing performance. Very believable.

Of course my review would not be complete without at least one complaint (hey, I like to give well-rounded critiques)...I would have liked to have not had the young boys as the killers. It just didn't make sense to me. I don't believe the deaf kid loved his brother so much he'd kill for him nor do I believe the boys accidentally shot a girl then had to finish her off before she squealed. I'm just sayin'...

---

Rating: - Great Movie!
I think this movie is very well done. The story and the characters portrayed are both excellent. Tim Robbins plays an extremely disturbed individual, and rightfully so. The grieving Sean Penn and the diligence of Kevin Bacon amongst the back drop of the small network of childhood friends, very well played. The movie keeps you on the edge of your seat. And the ending... was not at all what I had anticipated.
Well cast and extremely good acting.

---

Rating: - Fantastic
There is not really much to say about this movie other than if you haven't seen it you need to. It is one of the greatest movies of all time I think.