Dir. Clint Eastwood
This murder mystery drama was something of a return to form for Clint Eastwood. The story revolves around reformed convict Jimmy Markum (Sean Penn) and his devoted wife Annabeth (Laura Linney) who have their lives torn apart when their teenage daughter Katie (Emmy Rossum) is beaten and killed. The film is competently directed, ambitious and features great performances, but perhaps just falls short of Eastwood’s best work due to great individual scenes failing to come together to create a truly convincing whole.