Bad things happen to good people.

Good people can cause bad things to happen, even when they are trying to do good.

This is the horrible irony at work in Sean Penn's plodding but ultimately rewarding whodunit The Pledge.

The Pledge is based on a detective thriller by Swiss novelist Friedrich Durrenmatt.

It opens with a heinous crime, the rape, murder and mutilation of a child.

It's the very day Nevada homicide detective Jerry Black (Jack Nicholson) is retiring.

The veteran policeman promises the distraught parents of the girl that he will discover and bring their daughter's killer to justice.

A man is accused, but Jerry doesn't believe he is the killer. He is rightfully convinced it is the work of a serial child killer.

Over the period of a year, Jerry stumbles on the clues to the killer's identity as he carefully and painstakingly sets the trap that will end the reign of terror.

The clues on what to expect from The Pledge are just as prolific.

As a writer, Durrenmatt believed that existence is basically absurd.

Good does not necessarily triumph over evil and fate has a way of tormenting and thwarting even the best intentions of the best individuals.

The last collaboration between Penn and Nicholson was the equally disturbing and dire The Crossing Guard.

As such, it's safe to conclude The Pledge will not be a typical Hollywood detective thriller.

It will tax and exasperate the viewer, but along the way it will yield exceptional performances and some harrowing drama.

Nicholson is amazing.

His performance is completely without artifice. He makes everything seem so real, so effortless. He even manages to bring a degree of self-effacing humour to Jerry's mission.

When Jerry befriends and falls in love with Lori (Robin Wright Penn), a battered wife who works as a waitress, the resulting relationship is sweet, innocent, touching and absolutely credible despite the difference in their ages.

The scary thing is that Lori has a young daughter, the same age and type as the other victims.

It's pretty obvious what's going to happen.

Then again, it might not be.

This is Durrenmatt and this is Penn.

The Pledge boasts flawless cameos from Helen Mirren as a psychologist, Vanessa Redgrave as the first victim's grandmother, Costas Mandylor as a macho police officer and Mickey Rourke as a devastated parent.

Penn is in no hurry to tell this story, but he is determined to fill each step of the way with impending dread.

Scenes of children playing in lonely settings are so very creepy.

Penn also wants this story to be mythical.

The settings and the characters are all heightened so we are aware that Jerry is not just searching for a killer, but for his own salvation.

The Pledge is not an easy movie to watch.

It's also not an easy film to forget, because so much is purposely left unresolved.

It is haunting, disturbing and genuinely unsettling.

(This film is rated AA)

More Movie Reviews