The Woodsman

[moviegroupie]

Kevin Bacon looks good in this, as does the movie.

It has a mystical glow around it

3rd limited movie I want to see, it's killing me! Others?

[Fisting Ackbar]

Will be a rental. The pedophilia subject matter doesn't scare me away, but it's not something that's on my immediate list to see.

[Moviefan1234]

I love movies dealing with inner demons, and I have always been a huge fan of Kevin Bacon. Too bad it has such a limited release.

[KLash]

A decent film with a subject matter i have not seen dealt with in such a light before, however ultimately the film drags and its not entertaining but does however make you think about the portrayal or pedophiles, and whether they can change their sexual nature.

*****Some spoliers from here in*****

The story centres on a released prisoner, Walter(Kevin Bacon), following a sentance of 12 years for acts of pedophilia. He has been put up in a house and given a job within a lumberyard.......and so hopefully he can get his life back on track, in essence a second chance.
The problem is that his new house is directly opposite an elementary school playground :confused: (i never actually found an answer for why they allowed him to live so close to children).

He begins to try and get his life back on track, going to work promptly each day, keeping himself to himself and generally contemplating the changed world around him. The Woodsman centres completely on Walter, and more Walter's emotional being. Bacon here plays the part brilliantly, although the speaking parts are pretty limited his facial actions and sense of thought are evident and well done.

Backing him up are a collegue at the lumberyard played by Kyra Sedgewick, who is also segregated from the rest of the working group, she befrinds Walter and they become lovers........(showing Walter's ability to be normal perhaps).

You can see Walter's struggle to keep up with the world around him and also his struggle to stop the thoughts of pedophilia still in is head. He attends a number of psychiatric meetings to try and discover the root of his pedophilic nature and how he feels about himself. Again during these meetings Bacon plays the part well, glancing, shifty eyes, the cover up of embaressing memories and the emotional stress and turmoil boiling within the man.

The storyline itself doesnt really have a continuing link, it basically centres on Walter's struggle to control his actions, which later on in the film become very shocking!! The scene with the girl on the park bench although in essence touching, the dialougue is jaw dropping!

I feel the plot could have done with a little more substance, seeing Walter go to work each day is not much of a film, but it does trickle along slowly.

A film worth seeing for the way it deals with the subject matter, and i have to give a mention to Mos Def, who played the part of the police inspector very well, entirely authoritive. Bacon's perfomance is well done, his silent and lonely vigule is backed up by a good acting performance.

This is a film that will leave you haunted and wondering about the world around us, as well as our judgement on others unlike ourselves.

7/10

[BakeTheMooCow]

Its a film with no mis-steps, but some missed steps (0.o)

Kevin Bacon blew me away. I think he deserves an Oscar. No other actor on the planet would have touched this role with a ten-foot pole. Not only does he take it on, but flexes every acting muscle he can muster, from his facial expressions to his body language to the dead cold look in his eyes. The only problem is there's not enough external conflict in his life. The inner demons are undeniable, but the movie feels stretched too thin sometimes. I would've like more sub-plots. Still, it has a strong performance at its core and that one scene at the end on the park bench is phenomenal, to say the least.