Woodsman

Year: 2004

Grade: B

Country: USA

Director: Kassell

Review

a rough film. kevin bacon plays an ex-con out of jail after 12 years. he gets a job working at a saw mill and tries to go on with his life. mos def does a very good job playing a cop who is keeping bacon in check and kyra sedgwick plays bacon’s co-worker/girlfriend. it’s a tough film because the subject matter is so heavy and the characters are difficult and multi-faceted. bacon’s character is given a bit of an out with the audience because of his redemption late in the film, and i’m not so sure i liked it because it was too easy, but overall his character is a difficult one. kyra sedgwick also plays a character who isn’t easily grasped – like bacon, she is conflicted and does things that are seemingly out of character. this, though, is one of the strongest elements of the film. in this way the film is more realistic, and impactful as a result, than films that deal strictly with archetypes.