Edge of Darkness (2010 film)

At South Station, Boston, homicide detective Thomas Craven picks up his daughter Emma, who comes home to visit. On the car ride and at home, Emma feels increasingly unwell, vomiting and suffering a nosebleed. When they step outside the house to go to a hospital, a masked gunman shouts "Craven!" and opens fire with a shotgun, hitting Emma. Craven attends to his daughter, who dies in his arms.

While formally identifying Emma's body, Craven takes a lock of her hair as a memento, then returns to duty to help find out who wanted to kill him. Upon discovering a .45 pistol in Emma's nightstand, he starts to suspect that Emma was the gunman's target, not him. The gun's ownership leads him to David, her boyfriend. David is fearful of Northmoor, a weapons company that employs him and Emma, and refuses to talk, only giving Craven Emma's apartment key. In Emma's apartment, Craven finds a Geiger counter and later discovers her hair is radioactive.

Craven visits Jack Bennett, Northmoor's CEO. Northmoor leases a research and development facility from the U.S. government. Bennett claims the firm is working on clean nuclear energy, but refuses to go into detail. He inquires rudely about Craven's feelings after Emma's death.

Craven repeatedly has visions of Emma's past, including short conversations, typically as the happy young child he remembers and loves. As he burns Emma's clothing in his backyard, Craven finds Jedburgh, a British "consultant". Jedburgh was tasked with tying up loose ends related to Emma, including her father. However, Jedburgh takes a liking to Craven, and lets him live.

One of Emma's activist friends, who is nearly killed by a Northmoor agent, reveals to Craven that Bennett ordered Emma's murder, as well as those of the other activists that aided her in investigating Northmoor. The company has been manufacturing nuclear weapons using foreign designs. The weapons were intended to be linked with foreign nations if they were used by the United States as dirty bombs.

Craven confronts U.S. Senator Jim Pine, who was contacted earlier by Emma, revealing that Craven knows almost everything that happened.

After examining Emma's fridge with the Geiger counter, Craven discovers that her milk is radioactive. Craven also falls sick. He is abducted by Northmoor agents, and wakes up handcuffed to a gurney in the Northmoor facility, but manages to escape. His health deteriorating from radiation poisoning, Craven heads to Bennett's house, and kills the Northmoor agents after forcing one of them at gunpoint to shout "Craven", finally identifying him as Emma's killer. Bennett shoots and wounds Craven, but Craven also wounds Bennett and forces some of the radioactive milk down his throat. Bennett attempts to take some pills to counteract the radioactivity, but Craven tells Bennett he deserves what's coming to him and fatally shoots him.

Jedburgh meets with the Senator and two political advisers who had hired him. They want to spin the Northmoor incident in a positive light. Jedburgh suggests that portraying it as an assassination attempt on the Senator could be an angle to keep Bennett's death out of the headlines. They are pleased with this idea until Jedburgh abruptly kills both advisers and the senator. When a young police officer nervously enters the Senator's room, Jedburgh asks the officer at gunpoint if he has children. When the officer replies yes, Jedburgh lowers his gun, allowing the officer to shoot him dead.

A young reporter for the local TV station, who had spoken to Craven a few nights earlier, opens a letter from him which contains DVDs recorded by Emma revealing the conspiracy. As Craven dies in the hospital, the spirit of Emma comforts him. The ghosts of Craven and Emma are then shown walking down the corridor toward a bright, white light.

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• Mel Gibson as Detective Thomas Craven, Boston Police Department. Gibson is a fan of the television series, and the film marks his first starring role since 2002's We Were Soldiers and Signs, following time spent focusing on directing (The Passion of the Christ, Apocalypto) and an involuntary hiatus following a controversial 2006 alcohol fueled incident. Gibson attended a gun club with two policemen to improve his marksmanship for the film.
• Ray Winstone as Darius Jedburgh, an ex-British Special Forces Captain turned private security operative sent to cover up the murder.{{cite news|author=Michael Fleming|title=Winstone replaces De Niro in 'Edge'|work=Variety|date=12 September 2008|url=https://variety.com/2008/film/markets-festivals/winstone-replaces-de-niro-in-edge-1117992081/|access-date=12 September 2008}} Robert De Niro had been cast in the role,{{cite news|url=https://variety.com/2008/film/news/de-niro-to-join-mel-gibson-on-edge-1117989930/ |author=Michael Fleming|title=De Niro to join Mel Gibson on 'Edge'|work=Variety|date=1 August 2008|access-date=2 August 2008}} but he walked out shortly after he arrived to begin shooting. A publicist for the actor cited "creative differences."{{cite news|author=Michael Fleming|title=De Niro exits 'Edge of Darkness'|work=Variety|date=4 September 2008 |url=https://variety.com/2008/film/markets-festivals/de-niro-exits-edge-of-darkness-1117991604/ |access-date=4 September 2008}}
• Danny Huston as Jack Bennett, Northmoor's shady head.
• Bojana Novakovic as Emma Craven, Tom's murdered daughter.
• Gabrielle Popa as Young Emma (credited as Maria Gabrielle Popa){{cite news| url=https://movies.nytimes.com/person/1703779/Maria-Gabrielle-Popa | archive-url=https://archive.today/20130811102915/http://movies.nytimes.com/person/1703779/Maria-Gabrielle-Popa | url-status=dead | archive-date=2013-08-11 | department=Movies & TV Dept. | work=The New York Times | title=Maria Gabrielle Popa}}
• Shawn Roberts as David Burnham, Emma's boyfriend.
• David Aaron Baker as Millroy
• Jay O. Sanders as Detective Bill Whitehouse, Tom's partner and close friend.
• Caterina Scorsone as Melissa, Emma's friend
• Gbenga Akinnagbe as Detective Darcy Jones, a detective in Tom's squad.{{cite news|url=https://www.variety.com/article/VR1117993640.html |author=Bryon Perry|title=Gbenga Akinnagbe|work=Variety|date=8 October 2008|access-date=7 November 2008}}{{verify source|date=April 2011}}
• Christy Scott Cashman as Detective Vicki Hurd
• Denis O'Hare as Moore
• Damian Young as Senator Jim Pine
• Peter Hermann as Sanderman
• Rick Avery as Allen C. Robinson Jr.
• Tom Kemp as Paul Honeywell
• Frank Grillo as Agent One, Emma's killer.
• Peter Epstein as Agent Two
• Wayne Duvall as Chief of Police
• Paul Sparks as Northampton Police Detective
• Frank L. Ridley as Automatic Weapons Cop.

{{div col end}}

In 2002, Martin Campbell announced that he was planning to adapt Edge of Darkness for the cinema.{{cite news |url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1764616.stm |title = Edge of Darkness 'set for big screen' |access-date = 9 April 2007 |date = 16 January 2002 |publisher = BBC News}} Active development began in early 2007 when Campbell met with producer Graham King, who first enlisted Australian playwright Andrew Bovell to write, and then William Monahan (fresh from winning an Academy Award for King's The Departed) to re-write the screenplay.{{Cite web |url=http://www.melsmegafans.com/futuro.htm |title=Mel´s Megafans |access-date=23 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080919133409/http://melsmegafans.com/futuro.htm |archive-date=19 September 2008 |url-status=dead }} Michael Wearing and BBC Films also co-produced the film.{{cite news | author = Michael Fleming | title = Mel Gibson returns for 'Darkness' | work = Variety | date = 28 April 2008 | url = https://variety.com/2008/film/news/mel-gibson-returns-for-darkness-1117984773/ | access-date=29 April 2008}}{{cite news|title=Three join Mel Gibson's 'Edge of Darkness'|author=Borys Kit|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=14 August 2008|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/three-join-mel-gibsons-edge-117539 |access-date=15 August 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080822184748/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/film/news/e3i334de7572cef8d49de1f2b35e67272af |archive-date = 22 August 2008}}

Filming began on 18 August 2008 in Boston, Massachusetts.{{cite news|title=We hear: Mel Gibson, Jason Varitek, Chaka Kahn |work=Boston Herald |date=20 August 2008 |url=http://news.bostonherald.com/track/inside_track/view.bg?articleid=1113926 |access-date=20 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120910135316/http://news.bostonherald.com/track/inside_track/view.bg?articleid=1113926 |archive-date=10 September 2012 }} A scene where Craven scatters his daughter's ashes at a beach was filmed at Rockport on 25 and 26 September.{{cite news|author=Jonathan L'Ecuyer |title=Mel Gibson will film scene in Rockport |work=Gloucester Daily Times |date=24 August 2008 |url=http://www.gloucestertimes.com/local/x645310006/Mel-Gibson-will-film-scene-in-Rockport |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130124035824/http://www.gloucestertimes.com/local/x645310006/Mel-Gibson-will-film-scene-in-Rockport |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 January 2013 |access-date=26 August 2008 }} They shot some scenes in Merrimac, Massachusetts from 15 September 2008 to 18 September 2008. Additional scenes were shot in Malden, Massachusetts in the old Malden hospital. Some of the final scenes were shot at a home in Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts. Additionally, Gibson and his crew set up shop for filming in western Massachusetts, with 180 staff staying in Northampton hotels. They shot in various locations in the Pioneer Valley, including Tully O'Reilly's Pub, the Northampton Athletic Club, and an older part of the Hampshire County Courthouse, all in Northampton. Also, Sugarloaf Mountain was shut down for a few days while they rented it out.The Republican (Springfield, Massachusetts), 1 October 2008, [http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/10/actor_mel_gibson_coming_to_nor.html "Actor Mel Gibson coming to Northampton next week to shoot new film on Main Street"] (The page at masslive.com was updated on 26 January 2010; it covers all of the production locations mentioned above.), accessed 20 May 2011 They also filmed at the Notch Visitor Center, Rt. 116, Amherst, and right across the street from the Visitor Center, buried in Bare Mountain, The Notch Cold War Bunker stood in for the main entrance of the Northmoor facility.

The film takes place in America, unlike the television series, which was based in England. "The idea was to transfer the story to a different time and place rather than just repeat what we did in England," Campbell said. "Boston seemed like the perfect location because it does have a whole English, Irish signature on it."{{cite web |url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/features/edge_of_darkness_interview |title = Edge of Darkness: Martin Campbell interview |publisher=BBC Film Network |access-date = 26 January 2010 |date = 26 January 2010}} The film was originally scored by classical composer John Corigliano. However, the decision was made during postproduction (after Corigliano's score had been recorded and dubbed) to replace his score with a new one by Howard Shore.

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 54% based on 215 reviews and an average rating of 5.9/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "For better and for worse, Edge of Darkness offers vintage Mel Gibson, working within the familiar framework of a bloody revenge thriller."{{cite web | url = https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/edge_of_darkness/?critic=creamcrop| title= Edge of Darkness (2010) | website = Rotten Tomatoes | publisher = Flixster | access-date = 11 April 2025}} On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score 55 out of 100 based on 34 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews."{{cite web | url = https://www.metacritic.com/movie/edge-of-darkness/critic-reviews | title= Edge of Darkness Reviews | publisher = Metacritic | access-date = 3 February 2010}} Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.{{cite web|url=https://www.cinemascore.com|title=Find CinemaScore|format=Type "Edge of Darkness" in the search box|publisher=CinemaScore|access-date= 15 July 2021}}

Film critic Richard Roeper gave the film a grade of "B", stating: "Gibson excels in this entertaining conspiracy thriller."{{cite web |author=Richard Roeper |author-link=Richard Roeper |url=http://www.richardroeper.com/reviews/edgeofdarkness.aspx | title=Edge of Darkness Review | publisher=Richard Roeper.com | access-date=2010-01-29}} Michael Rechtshaffen of The Hollywood Reporter called the film "An intense Mel Gibson performance anchors this brutally effective crime thriller."{{cite news|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film-reviews/Edge+of+Darkness+--+Film+Review-1004061350.story | title=Edge of Darkness Film Review | work=The Hollywood Reporter | last=Rechtshaffen |first=Michael | access-date=2010-01-24}} Some critics, such as A.O. Scott of The New York Times, saw a similarity to Taken.{{cite news|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/movies/29edge.html | title=Movie Review – Edge of Darkness – Jaw-Breaking Boston Detective Unravels His Daughter's Murder | author=Scott, A.O. | work=The New York Times | access-date=2010-01-29 | quote=Mr. Gibson brought a wild, unpredictable streak to his action-hero persona. He traded that in at some point for the haggard, humorless demeanor he shows here, cracking the occasional somber joke on his way to breaking another jaw. Liam Neeson did this kind of parental rage much better in 2008 in Taken, which was an unusually lively and persuasive example of the genre. | date=29 January 2010}} Other critics, such as Chicago Sun-Times film critic Roger Ebert,{{cite news|url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100127/REVIEWS/100129977/1023 | title=Edge of Darkness | author=Ebert, Roger | work=Chicago Sun-Times | publisher=Sun-Times Media Group | date=27 January 2010 | access-date=2010-01-30 | quote=He's joined in this by the superb British actor Ray Winstone, as an intriguing free agent who turns up in Craven's garden one night with a cigar and an enigmatic line of patter.}} Chicago Tribune film critic Michael Phillips,{{cite news|url=http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/talking_pictures/2010/01/edge-of-darkness-3-stars.html | author=Phillips, Michael | title=Talking Pictures: 'Edge of Darkness' – 3 stars | work=Chicago Tribune | date=28 January 2010 | access-date=2010-01-30 | quote=Among them: Ray Winstone as assassin/fixer/philosopher of mysterious employ, who quietly becomes the most intriguing character...}} and New Orleans Times-Picayune film critic Mike Scott,{{cite web|url=http://www.nola.com/movies/index.ssf/2010/01/mel_gibson_returns_in_edge_of.html | title=Mel Gibson returns in 'Edge of Darkness' – and it's the same old Mel | author=Scott, Mike | work = New Orleans Times-Picayune | quote=British actor Ray Winstone ("The Departed", " "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull"), who plays an intriguingly complex hitman torn between doing his job and doing the right thing. | date=29 January 2010 | access-date=2010-01-30}} described Ray Winstone's character in the film as "intriguing."

On its first weekend, the film opened number two, grossing $17.1 million behind Avatar.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1957928,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100203233119/http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1957928,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=3 February 2010 | last=Corliss| first=Richard | author-link=Richard Corliss | title=Avatar Pushes Mel Gibson Off the Edge | magazine=Time | date=31 January 2010}} The film went on to gross $43.3 million in the United States and Canada and $37.8 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $81.1 million, against a production budget of $80 million.

The film was released by Warner Home Video on 11 May 2010 on DVD and Blu-ray.{{cite web|title=Edge of Darkness DVD::Standard Edition|url=http://www.wbshop.com/Edge-of-Darkness/1000118232,default,pd.html|work=WBshop.com|publisher=Warner Home Video|access-date=21 May 2011}}[http://www.hd-report.com/2010/05/11/bluraypick/ "Blu-ray Picks Of The Week for May 11th"] HD Report

{{Reflist}}

• {{IMDb title|1226273|Edge of Darkness}}
• [https://www.allmovie.com/movie/edge-of-darkness-am13613 Edge of Darkness at AllMovie]
• {{tcmdb title|id=740496}}
• {{mojo title|edgeofdarkness|Edge of Darkness}}

{{Martin Campbell}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edge of Darkness}}

Category:2010 films

Category:2010 action drama films

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Category:2010 crime thriller films

Category:2010s political thriller films

Category:American crime drama films

Category:American crime thriller films

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Category:Anti-nuclear films

Category:BBC Film films

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Category:2010s English-language films

Category:Fictional portrayals of the Boston Police Department

Category:Films about murder

Category:American films about revenge

Category:Films based on television series

Category:Films directed by Martin Campbell

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Category:2010s American films

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Category:English-language crime thriller films

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