Lodge Kerrigan made two very good movies before "Keane"; they were "Clean, Shaven" and "Claire Dolan". He specializes in depicting cinematically the troubled landscape of the human mind. His latest shares similarities with "Clean, Shaven" in that it is also about a mentally ill man (Damian Lewis) searching for a missing daughter. Lewis's portrayal of William Keane almost comes close to eclipsing Peter Green's extraordinary portrayal of a schizophrenic in the former film -- almost, but not quite.
Kerrigan is interested in the intricacies of behavior and is able to render every moment between two people fascinating. His direction of Keane's blossoming relationship with Abigail Breslin is superb, as are the sequences in which Keane searches for his missing daughter.
The film's final revelation is a scorcher.
This is not a pleasant or simplistic film. It is documenting a reality that feels familiar. It is not as graphic or physically confronting as "Clean, Shaven", which is both great drama and great horror, but it is riveting.
Kerrigan is interested in the intricacies of behavior and is able to render every moment between two people fascinating. His direction of Keane's blossoming relationship with Abigail Breslin is superb, as are the sequences in which Keane searches for his missing daughter.
The film's final revelation is a scorcher.
This is not a pleasant or simplistic film. It is documenting a reality that feels familiar. It is not as graphic or physically confronting as "Clean, Shaven", which is both great drama and great horror, but it is riveting.