Review of Edge of Darkness (2010) by Dawdlingpoet — 22 Nov 2021

This is quite a dark film, both in terms of the themes contained and the plotline and in terms of the lighting. I was almost glad of that when it came to the key action scenes, given it meant some of the more gory scenes didn't show all the literal ins and outs of the results from the gunfire(!). I remember thinking that it somehow reminded me of an adult graphic novel or comic strip for some reason, perhaps a bit like Sin City or something similar. The tone is quite mean and moody, thanks to the musical score and certainly the whole revenge theme is heavily played on throughout.

Given Mel Gibsons role in the Lethal Weapon film franchise, this role certainly doesn't have him treading any new (or new at the time this was released, back in 2010) ground but for the role he plays, he came across as quite believable, I think it can be said, no matter what you think of his rather (in my eyes) distasteful personal opinions that have got him in trouble in the past, as an actor he's not too bad. More generally, the film I found to be quite engrossing - I liked the plot pace and thought it seemed at least somewhat plausible in terms of what happened, helping to keep me intrigued to see what the final outcome would be, while the action scenes are quite realistic, rather gritty at times. The only downside, I'd say, was at the very end, where the sentimentality that had only been lightly hinted at via Cravens hallucinations/flashbacks of his daughter as a child, became a bit too saccharine sweet perhaps, as it seemed to fly in the face of the tone of the film prior to then, for the most part but then I suppose some viewers may have complained if things were depicted differently and I imagine this is a point of personal taste but it can't be denied that its quite Hollywood, in general really as of course the basic plotline, a man seeking revenge after his loved one, his own flesh and blood is killed, is hardly original but the plot beyond that is intriguing nevertheless.

The special effects are done well, it had me second guessing what we'd find out next about the secret corporation his daughter Emma had found herself involved with and it kept me on the edge of my seat during faster action scenes which took me by surprise, so overall I'd say this was a good film, one for fans of action films but moreso particularly thrillers.

Yes, I'm happy to recommend this film as I felt it was quite engrossing and entertaining, with numerous plot twists and a good amount of action scenes. It features a good cast with a good use of musical score and some good camerawork.