Stone (2010) – Thriller Movie Review

By Melissa Antoinette Garza

My brother bought this Blu-ray on a whim.  He had never heard of it but it was $3.99 and starred Robert De Niro,  Ed Norton and Milla Jovovich.   With that all-star cast, I would have taken the gamble myself.

We watched the trailer first, and in all honesty it’s very misleading.  The synopsis on IMDB matches the plot of the advertisement but not the movie itself.

It appeared that the film had a very basic and unoriginal plot.  It showed Jack Mabry (De Niro), an all-around nice guy who has it all.  He’s a respected parole officer who is nearing retirement.  He’s so dedicated to the position that he asks to finish his cases prior to leaving.

His last parolee is Stone (Norton).  From the preview, Stone appeared to be a cold blooded criminal willing to use the sexuality of his ditzy wife Lucetta (Jovovich) to get out of jail.  Stone seemed callous and cruel who was willing to look the other way while his wife seduced Jack so that they could blackmail him into agreeing with the parole.

It seemed as though it had promise.  It was definitely a film I had seen 1000 different ways before.  I instantly thought about late 80s and early 90s thrillers like Sea of Love (1989), Color of Night (1994), Whispers in the Dark (1992), Basic Instinct (1992) etc. Sure, it’s an overdone premise but I was fairly certain that the acting power could sell it and make it worth the watch.

Oddly, the film is practically the exact opposite of what was advertised.  First, Stone is far more complex and original than the typical bad guy uses girl to pull one over on good guy.  Sadly, I really think the film would have reached a wider audience and received more attention had the trailer given a fair and honest representation of the plot.

The movie opens with a younger Jack (Enver Gjokaj) fighting with his wife Madelyn (Pepper Binkley).   It’s apparent that Madelyn doesn’t want to be with him anymore but Jack refuses to let her go.  Rather than make arguments as to why they should try to make things work, he does the unimaginable.   He runs upstairs and grabs their sleeping child Candace (Kylie, Bailey, and Madison Tarnopol) who couldn’t be more than 10.  He holds the girl outside of the window and threatens to drop her two-stories down if Madelyn doesn’t stay with him.

Of course, Madelyn relents.  He puts Candance down and hugs his wife tightly apologizing.

The opening scene is significant for a few reasons.  First, it introduces the main character as something other than a protagonist.  The choice in making his deed such a dastardly one ensures that the viewer is going to have quite a bit of difficulty letting it go.  Had he simply gotten drunk or was unfaithful, the audience is more willing to look the other way.  Exhibiting violent behavior, especially to a child, is quite different.  The image of him holding the child in such a maniacal and insane manner isn’t something that is easy to look past and it’s definitely not something the viewer would forget.

Second, the very ending has a similar situation arising.  Though the stakes, the reasoning and the target are far different, Jack’s approach is eerily similar.

After the horrific opening scene, we are brought to the present where modern day Jack (De Niro) and Madelyn (Frances Conroy) are in church.  Their life seems to be a very tame one.  Madelyn takes care of Jack by getting him his beverages.  He watches TV while she completes puzzles.

Upon going to work, Jack obtains permission from his boss to see his parole cases through to the end.  He is then introduced to Stone.  Initially, Stone does seem angry, arrogant and filled with self-pity.  He received a sentence of 12-15 years for covering up the murder of his grandparents by setting fire to their house.  He was high at the time and the murderer was one of his friends.  Initially, Stone has no desire to discuss the crime.  Jack pushes him to reminding that without his recommendation the full 15 would be served.  Stone, already serving 10 years is desperate to get out.  He brings up sex and though Jack tries to change the subject, Stone gets detailed about the things that his wife Lucetta does in bed.

Later Lucetta visits Stone in prison.  She discloses that under her dress she’s naked.  She takes his hand and puts it on top of her while she attempts to unbutton his trousers.  He backs away reminding her that he can’t receive a violation or else it jeopardizes his freedom.   As he explains this to her, he sees a prisoner reading the Bible to his kid at a visiting table a few rows down from his own.  Something strikes him about it and later he becomes compelled to research religious avenues.

After leaving, she calls over a random man who we never learn the identity of.  All we see is her bucking underneath him in passion.  She’s a bit of a skank – a ditzy skank but a skank nonetheless.

Meanwhile, a prison riot breaks out.  From a short distance, Stone watches as a fellow inmate is beaten to death.  He’s so close that blood spatters on his face.  It is here that the new Stone is born.  He has an epiphany.  Combined with his new outlook on philosophy and God, he has also developed a new approach to his life in general.

During his great transition, Lucetta has developed an affair with Jack.  When Lucetta first starts to reach out, Jack tells her that there is proper protocol she must follow.  Soon, the calls come to his house and have seductive undertones.  Jack is all too willing to listen and the two begin having sex.

Lucetta becomes slightly obsessed with Jack.  He stops the affair but Lucetta doesn’t like taking ‘no’ for an answer.  Don’t get me wrong, she doesn’t act like Glenn Close.  Thankfully, there aren’t any cooked rabbits or else I would have started crying like a baby.  Ever since my husband and I adopted Arino BunBun Garza, neither of us can hear anything (even fiction), regarding violence towards bunnies without our hearts hurting.  We’re both saps.  A short time ago, I bought Night of the Lepus (1972) as a present for Arino.  I had never seen the film and was horrified by the amount of bunny abuse within the first half hour.  When the Bun watches it now, I just fast forward until the bunnies become huge and take over.  We also have a separate ending where the rabbits are victorious (meaning, we just stop watching after their rampage).

Sorry about the tangent.  Arino just turned 1 and I find more and more of my articles turn into chats about him.   To get back to Stone, Lucetta makes an appearance at Jack’s causing Madelyn’s suspicion to get aroused.

Jack is quite rude to her and physically forces her into the car.  His next conversation with Stone is worse than any of his others.  First, he signed the paperwork for parole and sent them in.  Second, when the conversation turns to Lucetta, Jack becomes convinced that the two used him.

Things continue to get dark and depressing for Jack which eventually leads him to act in a desperate and criminal fashion.

There are several underlying themes that Stone goes at great length to communicate.  Though the movie uses a hammer to hit the viewer over the head with the points, they’re still interesting.

The first major argument is that the line between good and evil is not black and white.  There are several ways this is shown.  First, there is a hanging questions concerning who the protagonist is.  At one point, it definitely shifts to Stone, but even prior to his epiphany and Jack’s major downfall, there are definite hints that the image of goodness surrounding Jack is just that – an image.  In one scene, as Jack is descending into complete madness there is a preacher on the radio discussing good vs. evil.

The skewed line of good and evil may seem obvious and overdone, but here it’s done in a different and serious fashion with excellent actors and a believable storyline.  It also isn’t the only message.  When Stone gets his epiphany, he finds a religious brochure which in a way absolves him of guilt concerning the fire.  The belief system is structured in such a way that whatever is fated to occur, will occur; and that we are merely mechanisms used by God to ensure the process goes as planned.

Lecutta doesn’t believe in God, Jack questions his existence, Stone has a different interpretation and Madelyn is a devout believer who is offended at Jack’s constant use of the Lord’s name in vain.

Even with religion, Madelyn commits a serious crime.  One can hardly blame her or her callous demeanor after the fact.  At this point, she certainly has her reasons.

The movie ends on a rather dark note. (spoilers) Jack is revealed to be the A1 Asshole he has always been.  His colleagues are disgusted by his behavior when he sexually harasses his successor.  Madelyn leaves him after she is unsuccessful at setting a fire to their house in an attempt to kill them both.  Candace (Rachel Loiselle) lets on that her father was always douche of the year as she asks her mother why she didn’t leave sooner.

Completely distraught and lost, Jack tracks down Stone who is now paroled.  He puts a gun to his face as he blames Stone for everything.  Stone is self-assured and informs Jack that he isn’t going to do anything.  Jack, just as he did when he held Candace outside of the window, becomes defensive and says in an antagonistic fashion, “You don’t think I’ll do it?”  Stone is more confident than Madelyn was and once again repeats that he will not pull the trigger.  He then turns his back and walks away from a broken Jack leaving the viewer to ponder with the many ‘what ifs’ that brought all of the characters together in this fashion.

Overall, the movie was a pleasant surprise.  It was a far better production than advertised.  Though it definitely had many elements that were depressing , the acting and actual premise sold every scene and made the movie not only worth watching but worth understanding .

As always De Niro did a fantastic job.  He is a walking American Classic who has been in more than his share of amazing films.

Norton also did a great job.  He has the uncanny ability of being able to portray the most innocent and kind people in the world or the guiltiest and most hated.  Whether looking at American History X (1998), Primal Fear (1996), Down in the Valley (2005) or even Death to Smoochy (2002) he is notorious for portraying very dualistic characters and perfects it every time.  This is no exception and once again he shines on screen.

Jovovich also does phenomenal work.  Personally, I’m accustomed to seeing her in the very badass role of Alice in the Resident Evil movies.  Here she plays a bit of a directionless ditz. Everything from her mannerisms  to her manner of speaking helps give credibility to a character that could have easily been made one dimensional and unrealistic.  Rather than just play her as quirky and weird like a brainless Zooey Deschanel type, Jovovich instead assured she had depth and was an actual character rather than a caricature.

Overall, the pace of the movie was good, the story-line was interesting and the characters were all fascinating in their own distinct way.

I would definitely recommend viewing this one.

Scared Stiff Rating: 6.5/10