Movie Review: Edge of Darkness
From his anti-Semitic rant during a DUI bust to fathering a child through an extramarital affair, things have not been going well for Mel Gibson. For the last seven years, his name has been associated with scandal. To make things worse, he hasn’t appeared in any films, resulting in a tragic lack of distraction from his damaged reputation. So, naturally, his return to the silver screen raises some concerns. The most important of which is whether or not audiences can separate Gibson himself from his performance. Will audiences buy into his character or will they constantly be plagued with lingering thoughts of Gibson’s tumultuous personal life? As it turns out, Mel can still deliver.
Gibson returns to acting in Edge of Darkness as Thomas Craven, a detective investigating the shooting death of his only daughter. At first, investigators assume Craven is the intended target, but upon further digging, this theory becomes less and less likely. Craven learns of his daughter’s political activism and the unsavory practices of the company she worked for, leading him to navigate a maze of corporate greed and government conspiracies.
Gibson convinces in his role, despite (or perhaps thanks to) playing a character we’ve seen him play before; he is no stranger to playing a man wronged, bent on revenge (see 1999’s Payback or 1996’s Ransom). Using this familiar archetype reminds viewers more of the Gibson of the ’90s that they know and love, rather than his more recent wrongdoings. This gives Mel a chance to redeem himself as an actor, and he succeeds. Gibson carries the story, which, itself, isn’t bad either. Sure, it requires a substantial suspension of disbelief, but never does the film feel like it’s jumping the shark. One can buy into the action and the mystery, and the film’s pacing fosters suspense.
Edge of Darkness is not groundbreaking filmmaking by anyone’s standards, but it does entertain. Which is, after all, why we watch movies in the first place.
Overall Rating: 
