The Woodsman
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Movie Reviews of The Woodsman
Movie Review: A deeply engrossing film
Summary: 5 Stars
I have been anticipating to see "The Woodsman" for sometime now. I finally caught the afternoon matinee and loved it. This film was very subtle and didn't adhere to your typical introduction, suspenseful build-up and climatic ending. The film was intense yet subtle.
Kevin Bacon puts in an amazing performance as Walter, a pedophile who was recently released from prison. He is trying to start a new life after serving 12 years for molesting a few young girls (I was under the impression that it was three but I could be wrong). Unfortunately the only apartment that he could get was across the street from a elementary school. This alone tests Walter and his inner demons. Real-life spouse Kyra Sedgewick puts in a equally wonderful performance as Walter's girlfriend/co-worker Vickie. Despite knowing Walter's past, she still wants to be with him and eventually opens up to him about her troubled past.
The cameo appearances by Eve, Mos Def, David Alan Grier, and Benjamin Bratt were excellent. I wish that there was a bit more of David Alan Grier as Walter's boss but otherwise their presence in the film were just as compelling as the lead characters. I wasn't too impressed by the cameo appearance by Madonna's ex-boyfriend Carlos Leon as Pedro. His acting abilities is something to be left desired. The stand out performance by the following actors had to be Mos Def. Mos Def's performance as Sgt. Javert who is constantly up Walter's grill, especially when something bad happens in the neighborhood.
I have to give major points to director Nicole Kassell for tackling a very uncomfortable, if not ugly subject which is pedophilia. The subject matter is definitely not for the squeamish. The cinematography was very gritty which matched well with the subject. The way the film was edited was excellent and conveyed to this moviegoer the torment that Walter was experiencing.
My only flaw I found with the film is the way that Walter's past was handled. I did not like being given snippets of a young girl and the red rubber ball that I used to play dodgeball with in elementary school. I understood that it was part of Walter's past but I think I would have liked to have known a little more or had just left it out altogether.
The best qualities about this film is how Nicole treated her lead characters Walter and Vickie. They were flawed, wounded souls to say the very least but at the same time they were human and trying to make their way through life . By all means, Nicole certainly doesn't paint pedophilia in a positive light. She makes it very clear that pedohpilia is wrong but she at the same time wants to show the moviegoer what a convicted pedophilia goes through when he is re-integrated with society after serving prison time. It ain't a pretty picture but it certainly gave me some insight to what a convicted child molester goes through in society.
After Kevin's stunning performance in 2003's "Mystic River", I didn't think he could put in an even better performance but he did here in "The Woodsman". Like wine, Kevin Bacon just keeps getting better and better with age.
Movie Review: Brave Art
Summary: 5 Stars
It is a brave actor indeed who takes on the role of a paedophile, given the revulsion with which child molesters are generally (and justifiably) viewed by society. To attempt to invest the role with some humanity, in my view, requires courage beyond belief.
Kevin Bacon, one of Hollywood's more underappreciated talents, manages to pull it off though in this dark, disturbing tale of a convicted child molester trying to put his past behind him after release from a 12-year bid.
The movie seems to take no particular position on paedophilia and just looks on unblinkingly while Bacon, who plays Walter, struggles unsuccessfully to fight his demons. We are offered no explanation as to how he turned out the way he is and there is no resolution or redemption before the end credits begin to roll. Walter does manage to find love in the arms of the lovely Vicke, played by Kyra Sedgwick but this offers no solace. He still has the feelings he has and, as an encounter with a little girl in the park clearly demonstrates, he is still a danger to children. This makes the movie uncomfortable to watch but it's so intelligent and compelling at the same time, we dare not take our eyes away.
There is brilliant support from Benjamin Bratt who plays Walter's brother-in-law. His wife, i.e. Walter's sister refuses to see him outright and it's clear to see the man's loyalties are torn. He tries to be supportive to Walter though, and is even prepared to sit down and have a beer with him but isn't prepared to have him at his home and definitely isn't prepared to have him in contact with his daughter. I guess loyalty only can go so far.
But the movie was made for me personally by Mos Def, who gives an astounding performance as a suspicious local detective who keeps a wary eye on Walter. Mos exudes a cool, restrained menace that just proves what a good actor he is. Even though the detective he plays treats Walter with humanity, even politeness, you can also see his utter contempt for what Walter stands for and you imagine him itching for an excuse to be able to go for his gun and put a bullet into Walter's head, putting him out of his misery while making the neighbourhood a safer place at the same time. I often wonder what would've happened if Mos hadn't taken the detour into hip hop and had focused on his acting career instead. (I knew him as an actor on "The Cosby Mysteries" before I knew about his rapping). He's definitely a much better actor than many of the rappers turned actors who have successful movie careers right now - DMX, LL Cool J, Queen Latifah, Ice Cube. I'm hoping maybe now he figures it's time to go for it.
Speaking of rappers, Eve also makes an appearance (with black hair, no less!) and puts in a good performance, as the girl who believes the neighbourhood has the right to know there's a child molester in their midst.
Due to its subject matter this movie does leave a strange taste in the mouth but as a piece of art it is not only brave, it is utterly faultless. A stunning debut for the director, Nicole Kassell.
Movie Review: BREATHTAKING FILM BUT, FOLKS, GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT!
Summary: 5 Stars
It's absolutely consternating to read how other reviewers get important details of the story wrong or don't get the gist of it at all. Have they really seen this film, or are they just writing reviews based on their personal disgust of the subject matter? The point of the story is that it's just a story. It wasn't made to promote pedophilia. It doesn't directly condemn, but it certainly doesn't condone. It doesn't preach, but then, it doesn't have to. You and I know that what Walter did is wrong; even Walter knows what he did is wrong. He hates himself for what he did and he's trying to change.
The reviewer who complains that there are no "normal" men in the film obviously has not watched this film. Walter's brother-in-law is clearly depicted as a model father who loves his children and who would protect them at all cost. And Walter's coworkers certainly don't celebrate him when they find out about his past. And later, when Robin cries at the thought of her father making her sit on his lap, it reminds us that child abuse is unfortunately everywhere; it is not always the result of an encounter with a trenchcoat-wearing stranger. Finally, there's really no justifying the same reviewer's idiotic comment about Vicki taking in Walter so they can live happily ever after and subsequently have children that Walter can molest. Where did THAT come from? Some people just like to bitch, I guess.
First, I have to give my most heartfelt congratulations to Mr. Kevin Bacon. After his truly wretched and idiotic "Hollow Man", I had dismissed him as just a two-bit actor. He has redeemed himself a hundredfold with his amazing performance as Walter. It can't be easy to give such a tortured performance, especially with a subject matter that most of us don't want to think about, let alone deal with. I, too, am stunned that his performance was never, ever mentioned at Oscar time.
Other reviewers here have given detailed synopses of the plot including, unfortunately, giving away some of the more important story details, so I won't do that here. I will, however, clarify one reviewer's erroneous comment that Walter raped young girls. He did not. He specifically states that he never hurt them. No, that's not supposed to make us feel better about him, but this is a very important distinction for him. In his mind, he knows he's a bad man, but he's not THAT kind of bad man.
Well worth watching, this film will remain with you long after you've put the DVD back in its case. Also worthy of note, check out the featurette on how the film was made to see what the producers and filmmakers had to go through to get this film financed and made. Truly a labor of love from all involved: even the actors worked for practically nothing.
It's not often that you actually get to see an intelligent American film that is so rich in thought and emotion. See this movie. It is indeed a rare gem.
Movie Review: Tough-Minded Minor Masterpiece
Summary: 5 Stars
By treating them like adults, able to witness unsentimental reality with open eyes and minds, this film pays viewers the ultimate compliment. The Woodsman is a searing character study certain to prompt serious, troubling, and important questions. Unlike so many movies that treat sexuality, even grotesque sexuality, like a commodity, tinsel to be casually strewn about the set, there is absolutely nothing sexual about The Woodsman. It is one man's tale, told calmly, deliberately, and without prejudice.
The director, Nicole Kassell, does not invite sympathy or contempt; she simply lets Walter's life unfold through a series of small, carefully constructed scenes, each giving way to the next with the minimalist precision of a play. Newly out of prison, having served his sentence for a crime involving pedophilia, Walter is now faced with the unimaginably difficult challenge of finding a way back into society. Bacon is a consistently workmanlike actor who is never bad, usually good, and almost never great. (His porcine nose, ironically appropriate considering his name, makes him inappropriate for leading man roles reliant on good looks.) However, The Woodsman finds Bacon delivering the performance of a lifetime, made palpable because his craft is almost completely invisible.
All of Walter's rage, self-loathing, fear of the outside world, fear of himself, shame, pain, regret, and sorrow boil beneath his desperately controlled persona, deceptively shy and laconic. Vickie, real life wife Kyra Sedgwick, is excellent as the one person who slips through the veneer and touches this damaged, and damaging, human soul. Mos Def is equally on point as Walter's parole officer, casually expressing the contempt every viewer feels, inviting us to speculate just how vigorously we might express that contempt.
That Walter vents his self-hatred by acting out and terrorizing another of his kind, that his secret is discovered at work leading to cruel repercussions, that he must face his inner darkness once more (in the movie's most heartbreaking and spellbinding scene); these are merely plot points. There's very little story here, very little action, not even much in the way of resolution. What there is in its place is genius, on so many levels. Script, acting, directing, even cinematography.
The Woodsman is a blunt and quiet picture about a difficult subject relayed with an austere sensibility. This is what movie making could be - if movies were made by adults, for adults. Highly recommended.
Movie Review: Honesty and Grace
Summary: 5 Stars
This film honestly explores tough, taboo subjects. Lee Daniels, the producer, is one brave guy for making this film, a more impressive and nuanced follow-up to Monster's Ball. I watched it with serious trepidation, as I have a little too much personal experience on the victim end of things. But as a practicing Christian, I sensed that my predjudices against "the scum of the earth who should all be shot to remove them from the gene pool" wasn't exactly what Jesus seems to be saying all through the Gospel. I watched this movie to see if I could believe that one of these monsters could be redeemed.
Walter is a statistical anamoly. The liklihood of recidivism is extremely high for any convicted felon but for a sexual predator it is nearly impossible to stay out of the system once lawfully released back into society. The difference in his story is grace.
The most unlikely and rare portion of this story is that a criminal is honest about his very hideous crimes and receives unconditional love. That is not our society's way. As the movie so clearly elucidates, sexual predators will never be safe regardless of their state of rehabilitation. We banish them to isolation in many ways, not the least of which is making their sexual crime record public on the internet.
He tries and tries and tries not to do it again. The temptations are everywhere, as girls are everywhere. In this movie, the costume designers don't even bother to dress the girls the way girls really dress, so provacatively, like little sexy women. In this movie, we avoid the trap of that whole discussion and focus on this man's challenge in facing his own demons. The reality is that he doesn't need revealing clothing to be attracted to 10 year olds. His illness started long before he knew what porn was.
The most amazing scene must be viewed. I won't give it away, as I honestly believe everyone should see movies that confront our hatred and prejudices. There is a moment where a would-be victim shows Walter who and what he is, as God would, and there in the face of God is the possibility of real redemption... and real rehabilitation.
There is not a single religious conversation in the movie, don't worry. (There is a church in the background at one point, and that's as far as it goes.) My interpretation is based on my belief that God is everywhere and in everything, and now, in my belief that everyone can be and is saved by the grace of God.