The Pledge is a strong picture. It's strong because it isn't necessarily about the Hollywood hero bringing the Hollywood villain to justice, and it's strong because it is so confident. It's strong because it is a reminder that people don't have built-in safety nets, and it's strong in the way it shows how everyone is equally fragile. It's strong, plain and simple.
The movie is set in Nevada, as Jack Nicholson's character Jerry Black is set to retire from the police force. With 6 hours to go, he leaves his own send-off party to investigate the death of an eight year-old girl. He inevitably goes to tell the parents the tragic news, and the mother gets Black to promise to find the killer. It is a promise that seems to have a quick resolution, after a local transient (Benicio del Toro) is brought into the station and confesses to the crime. Black, however, isn't completely convinced, and once his retirement is official, he can't get the case re-opened. He conducts some background interviews, then moves to a secluded part of the state and starts a new life as a gas station attendant, hoping to eventually find clues as to the killer's identity. Jerry is able to get in lots of fishing and begins to experience a family life he never imagined after he meets a young mother (Robin Wright-Penn) and her (gasp!) eight year-old daughter. The three form a gradual bond, but it is all put at risk when Jerry suspects the killer is nearby.
That's as much of the plot as I want to reveal, but I enjoyed the way the film became more psychological than thriller. It's directed by Sean Penn, surely one of the most accomplished actors today, and he does a great job of weaving elements of suspense with character, detail, and story. Penn uses extreme close-ups in some shots and really gets a lot out of the hugely talented cast too. Among some of the fine supporting actors are: Aaron Eckhart, Harry Dean Stanton, Costas Mandylor, Helen Mirren, Mickey Rourke, Vanessa Redgrave, and Sam Shepard.
There is a texture to The Pledge that is ultimately very difficult to describe. It paces itself, it is ambitious, and it wants to re-invent the viewer's expectations at every turn. As Jerry Black, Nicholson turns in a superb performance, one of the best of his career. It is a study of the psyche and an experience to behold. All of our character knowledge comes from the pauses and glances, not his dialogue, for his words are cordial and rarely personal. Wright-Penn is strong, and so are Aaron Eckhart (In the Company of Men) and Benicio del Toro (The Usual Suspects) in a disturbing but powerfully acted interrogation room sequence.
This is a joy of a movie to share with others, a small picture that delivers big results. Its creativity shines through, particularly in its conclusion which, as Penn presents it, seems strangely like the beginning of the end.
