James Cameron’s upcoming Avatar may be getting all of the hype lately, but there’s one film fast approaching which is exciting me the most – Edge of Darkness.
There’s one quite obvious reason for this. It marks the return of one Mel Gibson in his first starring role since 2002’s Signs. That’s right, when he’s not directing subtitled epics, becoming the most hypocritical Catholic in history, drinking heavily and being involved in alleged anti-Semitism (record expunged, nothing happened here, move along now), Mel Gibson acts.
His return to the big screen as a leading man comes in this Martin Campbell-directed remake of the acclaimed 1985 BBC miniseries of the same name. Edge of Darkness stars Gibson as Thomas Craven, a veteran cop investigating the murder of his daughter, which leads him into a murky world of conspiracy.
Even if this were not a remake, the plot hardly wins any prizes for originality. Similar tales of vengeance and cover-ups have been told and re-told many times before, and fewer have been better than 1999’s The Limey. With Steven Soderbergh’s picture still a relatively-recent release, Edge of Darkness has big shoes to fill. However, with Gibson in the lead role and two-time Bond franchise saviour Martin Campbell at the helm, it has the tools to fill said shoes to the brim.
The trailer suggests Gibson has channeled the raw edginess brilliantly let loose in Lethal Weapon but so poorly utilised in another revenge remake of his, 1999’s Payback, into a restrained yet simmering man on the path of justice. It suggests it will be his best performance in years, and will remind everyone of what they were missing.
With Danny Huston and Ray Winstone in support, Jim Cameron can keep his Na’vi, I’ll take cold, hard revenge please.
Edge of Darkness
Director: Martin Campbell
Cast: Mel Gibson, Ray Winstone, Danny Huston, Bojana Novakovic
Release Date: January 29th, 2010
Rating: TBC