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Movies / Upcoming / The Pledge
The Pledge

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The Pledge (2001)

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Reviews Counted:117

Fresh:90

Rotten:27

Average Rating:6.8/10

Consensus: Though its subject matter is grim and may make viewers queasy, The Pledge features an excellent, subtle performance by Jack Nicholson.

Runtime: 2 hrs 4 mins

Genre: Dramas

US Box Office: $18,894,185

Synopsis: Director Sean Penn's (THE INDIAN RUNNER, THE CROSSING GUARD) third film features Jack Nicholson as Jerry Black, a retired detective whose final case ultimately causes his slow descent into madness.... Director Sean Penn's (THE INDIAN RUNNER, THE CROSSING GUARD) third film features Jack Nicholson as Jerry Black, a retired detective whose final case ultimately causes his slow descent into madness. In the midst of his retirement party, Black decides to join Detective Stan Krolak (Aaron Eckhart) on one last case. The molested body of an eight-year-old girl is found in the Nevada mountains. When the chief suspect turns out to be a mentally challenged Native American (Benicio Del Toro), Black is not convinced of his guilt despite his confession. Unable to forget the promise he made to the dead girl's mother that he would find her daughter's killer, Black becomes determined to catch a monster that no one else believes is out there. His resolve increases when he realizes that two similar unsolved murders occurred in the same area in recent years, and the case hits closer to home when Black befriends Lori (Robin Wright Penn), a waitress with a threatening ex-husband, and her eight-year old daughter, Chrissy (Pauline Roberts). Nicholson is compelling in this study of a man whose obsession slowly eats away at his sanity as he attempts to keep his promise by any means necessary. [More]

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Robin Wright Penn, Patricia Clarkson, Benicio Del Toro

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Robin Wright Penn, Patricia Clarkson, Benicio Del Toro, Dale Dickey, Aaron Eckhart, Costas Mandylor, Helen Mirren, Tom Noonan, Michael O'Keefe, Pauline Roberts, Vanessa Redgrave, Mickey Rourke, Sam Shepard, Lois Smith, Harry Dean Stanton

Director: Sean Penn

Director: Sean Penn
Screenwriter: Jerzy Kromolowski, Mary Olson-Kromolowski
Producer: Michael Fitzgerald, Sean Penn, Elie Samaha
Composer: Hans Zimmer, Klaus Badelt
Studio: Warner Bros.

[See More Credits]

Reviews for The Pledge

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41 - 60 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

An elegant rejoinder to a tired genre, a consummate work of screen adaptation, and further evidence that there is precious little Sean Penn can't achieve on film, whether before or behind the lens.

Full Review Source: Sight and Sound | comment Comment
10/04/01
Richard Kelly
Richard Kelly
Sight and Sound

Penn, unafraid, strategically uses visuals that hack directors don't even know how to approach.

Full Review Source: Movie Habit | comment Comment
09/20/01
Marty Mapes
Marty Mapes
Movie Habit
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Critical Eye | comment Comment
09/14/01
Mark Freeman
Mark Freeman
Critical Eye

Penn's past directing gigs...are the work of a tortured soul; The Pledge was guided by a tortured artist.

Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
06/24/01
Bill Chambers
Bill Chambers
Film Freak Central

...a resolutely low-key and solidly unconventional exercise in frustration.

Full Review Source: DVDTown.com | comment Comment
06/18/01
John J. Puccio
John J. Puccio
DVDTown.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
06/12/01
Marrit Ingman
Marrit Ingman
Austin Chronicle

A movie as unsatisfying as it is ambitious.

Full Review Source: Movieline | comment Comment
04/16/01
Daniel Papkin
Daniel Papkin
Movieline

The film is more exciting that watching paint dry, however, because of great work by some very talented actors.

Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
03/26/01
Robert Roten
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: New Republic | comment Comment
03/08/01
Stanley Kauffmann
Stanley Kauffmann
New Republic

It is a story that is designed to frustrate those looking for easy answers and a neat wrap-up.

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
02/27/01
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

This is one of Nicholson's finest performances and that's saying one hell of a lot.

Full Review Source: Good Morning America | comment Comment
02/09/01
Joel Siegel
Joel Siegel
Good Morning America

Any opportunity to see Jack Nicholson when he's not on autopilot is exciting.

Full Review Source: eye WEEKLY | comment Comment
02/07/01
Jason Anderson
Jason Anderson
eye WEEKLY
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
02/07/01
Joe Leydon
Joe Leydon
San Francisco Examiner

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Scott Mantz' Movie Reviews | comment Comment
02/07/01
Scott A. Mantz
Scott A. Mantz
Scott Mantz' Movie Reviews
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Ebert & Roeper | comment Comment
02/07/01
Ebert & Roeper
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A film that – warts and all – is going to be far more interesting to talk about in future years than 90 minutes of gunfights would have been.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
02/07/01
Brian Webster
Brian Webster
Apollo Guide
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Blunt Review | comment Comment
02/07/01
Emily Blunt
Emily Blunt
Blunt Review

There's not enough payoff at the end of The Pledge, following so much build-up, but the story still maintains enough interest and suspense to keep viewers tuned in.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
02/07/01
Eric Monder
Eric Monder
Film Journal International

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
02/07/01
Greg Muskewitz
Greg Muskewitz
eFilmCritic.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
02/07/01
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
 
 
41 - 60 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
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Latest News for The Pledge

January 11, 2009: JackNicholson.org: The Jack Nicholson Pledge Interview: Breaking His Own Embargo On Letting it All Hang Out Opens in new window
More...

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