The Clearing
directed by Pieter Jan Brugge
written by Justin Haythe
starring Robert Redford, Helen Mirren, Willem Dafoe, Alessandro Nivola

       The Clearing is conclusively unclear in its own motives. Seemingly about forgiveness, the film takes unnecessary and distracting roads to get the point across. Missing the action and exposition of a thriller, it is also too restless as a character study. Robert Redford is Wayne Hayes, a wealthy, self-made businessman living in luxury with his wife, Eileen (Helen Mirren) who is abducted one morning by Arnold Mack (Willem Dafoe), a forgotten former employee with a life closing in an opposite direction. A fair debate could be made between the men, but Mack is more complainer than accuser and a lack in credible motive makes the relationship incurious. The sequences with Redford and Dafoe are intercut with a more intriguing story as Eileen becomes aware of her husband’s disappearance and plays host to an FBI investigation. That Mirren is such a strong actress makes for her character to become appropriately powerful rather than a cliché of distress. Her storyline so completely overshadows Redford’s that the film would work better by eliminating his, though the already brief running time would be substantially shortened. The intercutting is also the film’s principal device and misleading ‘surprise’ despite obviousness in its setup and result.