Edge of Darkness

Dir: Martin Campbell

2010

***

What a strange and varied portfolio of films Martin Campbell has under his belt. I've not always been a fan of his films but to my surprise and delight, Edge of Darkness turned out to be quite the entertaining thriller and just the sort of thing I hoped it would be. It was interesting to see Campbell revisiting and remaking his 1980's BBC miniseries into a film, I'm guessing it had been something of an ambition of his since 1985, although it's a very different kind of thriller. The original is more of a noir and a little bit slow in places while the 2010 film is action packed and is reminiscent of Mel Gibson's earlier films. I confess, I didn't want a political noir, I wanted a gun-shooting Gibson action film and that is exactly what I got. A career ambition or a lazy sell-out, I'm not sure and I don't really care in this instance, I was entertained throughout. Maybe it went to his head somewhat as the Green Lantern was an odd and rather terrible follow up decision by the director. Mel Gibson is brilliant in the lead role and Ray Winstone is also rather good in his supporting role. The beginning of the film totally took me by surprise and I was thrilled throughout. I think this film is somewhat overlooked, it is way above average for the genre, especially of the time, although it was still average in many respects. Think what you will of Mel Gibson but his performance here was a real return to form and something I took great enjoyment from.