The River King

As a thriller, The River King is as fast paced as thawing ice. Its intensity is in the isolation and disillusionment of a man who is determined to uncover the truth, though nothing is what it seems.

The body of a teenage boy is discovered in an ice-clogged river and two local cops from the bumbling school of "what do we do now?" investigate his death. An accident, suicide or homicide? Seems straightforward, except that one of the cops is seeing things that aren't there and a photography teacher is developing some eerie pictures. A conspiracy, misperception, or paranormal haunting? This intriguing film that uses sleight of hand to make you think it is about one thing, when it is actually about another.

No extras on the DVD.

"The River King" is a well-acted mystery. Edward Burns plays detective Abel Grey. He finds a body in the river and it's one of the students of the Hadden School, an exclusive college. Everybody Abel talks to, says it's suicide, but Abel has his suspicions. He also has to fight his personal demons that are intruding on the investigation.

Edward Burns puts in a really good performance. You care about his character. You definitely want to find out how the mystery ends. It looks great and the music is different too. The only thing I didn't get was the character of Betsy Chase. (Jennifer Ehle) She was not necessary to the movie.

It is odd that a film of this high quality went straight to video. Don't be fooled by that though. It's a film that's worth watching.

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It was a very good movie, with a wonderful mood and fairly strong story, although it wasn't telling the story you thought it was. The characters were very strongly drawn, I thought, and the pacing was terrific.

Nothing blew up, no CGi effects, and it's not based on a comic book, but I liked it anyway. And the two women leads were well worth watching, and Edward Burns is worth watching anytime. The musical score was well chosen to pace the movie.

I recommend it for a contemplative mood, when you're in the mood to "curl up with a good movie."

The River King is a refreshing movie. It has none of the usual clichés. The plot is not predictable. The movie presents the viewer with little hooks and clues that leave one wondering about how they all come together. At times, I was left wondering what type of movie is this? Is it a horror movie? Is it sci-fi? Is it a ghost story? The actors performed their roles convincingly. The character Abel Grey leads the viewer to believe in what he suspects is happening, that he is right. Carlin's character has the right balance, not too dumb, not too incredibly (ie unrealistically) smart, just like a regular person. No super heroes in this movie.

The cinematography and background music is so seductive and blends very well with the subject of the film. The time just fly by as the main characters arrive at a very plausible ending.

If you're tired of comic book hero movies, or TV-like stories, or violence, or CSI-like sleuthing then check out 'The River King'. I'm really happy that I did.

(*) Review title inspired by lyrics of "Riverside" by Agnes Obel Slow (occasionally too slow) but ultimately rewarding, nonetheless. That is probably the best and most honest way to describe "The River King". It's an old-fashioned murder mystery, although with supernatural touches and intense psychological overtones. The plot isn't nowhere near original, but it's absorbing from start to finish and there's a lovely end-twist, and - moreover - the filming locations and soundtrack are staggering, and the performances are more than good.

In a quiet and remote snowy town in Nova Scotia (what a beautiful region), the body of a student at an elite private boarding school is found in the river. The school's board, as well as the local Chief of Police, quickly wrap up the incident as a tragic suicide to avoid a massive scandal. Honest officer Abel Grey, however, strongly suspects it was a murder, and maybe even with some elite citizen and questionable hazing rituals involved. Abel's curiosity is not appreciated, and he is soon blamed for still having a hard time with his own brother's suicide. Still, Abel finds some evidence to keep the investigation open, and he also gets help from a lovely teacher at the school.

Edward Burns and Jennifer Ehle (who looks an astounding lot like a young Meryl Streep) are excellent, and what I really appreciate the most was how director Nick Milling subtly touches upon philosophical themes.