Why this movie went straight to DVD is beyond me. The mood is pure southern Gothic, the acting is terrific, and the story is complicated and sad.
The performances were dead on. TLJ hits Dave Robicheaux on the button. But the best is Mary Steenburgen as Bootsie. She really nails this part.
The story is about a Cajun cop who is haunted by his own demons, and by the demons he faces in his work as an Iberia Parish Deputy. The characters he meets in trying to solve the murders are so true to life that you wonder if the people playing the parts were really actors. John Goodman is great, as usual, as is Ned Beatty.
While a good old fashion murder mystery awaits you, what is more important, as it is in the novels by James Lee Burke, is the story of Robicheaux. He is a man who has a strong moral code, yet is violent, alcoholic, and continually puts his family in danger. The complexity of his character is difficult to portray, but TLJ does it better than anyone else could.
It is a fine, beautiful movie. Now if only another movie could be made that also includes Clete Purcell, one of the best sidekicks ever written in a mystery novel series.
The performances were dead on. TLJ hits Dave Robicheaux on the button. But the best is Mary Steenburgen as Bootsie. She really nails this part.
The story is about a Cajun cop who is haunted by his own demons, and by the demons he faces in his work as an Iberia Parish Deputy. The characters he meets in trying to solve the murders are so true to life that you wonder if the people playing the parts were really actors. John Goodman is great, as usual, as is Ned Beatty.
While a good old fashion murder mystery awaits you, what is more important, as it is in the novels by James Lee Burke, is the story of Robicheaux. He is a man who has a strong moral code, yet is violent, alcoholic, and continually puts his family in danger. The complexity of his character is difficult to portray, but TLJ does it better than anyone else could.
It is a fine, beautiful movie. Now if only another movie could be made that also includes Clete Purcell, one of the best sidekicks ever written in a mystery novel series.