Afflicted River

Over the weekend, I saw the movie Mystic River. I have to agree with all of the critics that Sean Penn did a real good job acting the role of a lost lower class father trying to cope with the murder of his daughter. On the other hand, after hearing Tim Robbins discuss the film on television, I was expecting an extended meditation on what it means to be male (different from the kind that society usually demands), and how to cope with that. At many points, aside from a rather brutal scene of violence (not the murder), this a police drama. I feel Affliction, with Nick Nolte, is a rather good film that explores the issue of violence and what it means to be male rather well. It is based on a book by Russell Banks that I haven't read yet. So, I'm focusing purely on content here. While the technical movie magic that Affliction employed may not be the same quality as Mystic River, I felt the story was pretty good.