Edge of Darkness

Editorial

After eight years of self-imposed, above-the-title retirement, Mel Gibson returns. Craggier, but with the same hair-trigger energy... It's always seemed, on screen and off, like he might just do anything — it's his blessing and his curse. Here he's as dangerous and empathetic as ever. It's good to have him back.

In all this, it's easy to forget just how good Gibson can be — not just as a star, where his charisma has often elevated pedestrian material, but as an actor. Watch his underrated Hamlet, or revisit Martin Riggs in Lethal Weapon — a movie that lives, beyond the quips and squibs, because of his emotional centre. The same can be said for Edge Of Darkness, where he's dealing with grief again, although wham-bam action and profane bon mots are largely absent in favour of infrequent, brutal violence and furrow-faced exposition.

Craven is damaged goods. A man you suspect was always emotionally stunted is now stunned, trying to process the loss of everything he cared for. He's attacked by inner demons and haunted by grief — literally, it could be said, as he hears the voice of his late daughter and imagines her there, as a little girl, as he explores her killing.

The violence is certainly not soft-focused, with the initial murder shocking, even though it's expected. Another road-side set-piece is impactful, if somewhat nonsensical, while the obvious use of stunt doubles mars some scenes. It's hard to know what to make of director Martin Campbell, the man who has twice invigorated Bond and made the excellent The Mask Of Zorro, yet allows shoddy workmanship akin to the stage-bound ice travesty of his own Vertical Limit.

Remember: just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean they're not out to get you. This may not be a great conspiracy thriller, but it's thankfully no Conspiracy Thriller.

Nev Pierce