The Woodsman

Infobox_Film
name = The Woodsman


starring = Kevin Bacon
Kyra Sedgwick
Mos Def
Benjamin Bratt
Eve
David Alan Grier
director = Nicole Kassell
producer = Lee Daniels
writer = Steven Fechter
Nicole Kassell
distributor = Dash Film / Universal Pictures
released = December 2004
runtime = 87 min
country = USA
language = English
budget = less than $3,000,000
tagline =
music = Nathan Larson
awards =
imdb_id = 0361127 |

"The Woodsman" is a 2004 film directed by Nicole Kassell. The movie stars Kevin Bacon as a convicted child molester who must adjust to life after prison.

Plot

Bacon plays Walter, a convicted child molester returning home to Philadelphia after a 12-year stint in prison. Walter finds that his friends and family have abandoned him, with the exception of his brother-in-law, Carlos (Benjamin Bratt). He gets a job at a lumber mill, where he meets Vicki (Kyra Sedgwick), a love interest and one of the few women working at the mill. Walter receives frequent visits from a verbally abusive cop named Lucas (Mos Def), whose role is to make sure Walter is staying away from children. In the movie, he must deal with the temptations around him, including a nearby primary school and a young bird-watcher, who he realizes is being abused at home and who helps him understand the damage he has done in the past. He also comes to suspect that a man he has seen watching children near his apartment building is also a child molester.

Production

The movie was shot in Philadelphia, which is the hometown of cast members Kevin Bacon, and Eve, as well as the birthplace of director Nicole Kassell, and producer Lee Daniels. Due in whole or in part to this, Bacon chose to speak with a thicker Philadelphia accent than he has, because he thought it was essential to the character.

Response

The film was well-received critically, with Bacon's performance in particular drawing praise. It was nominated for the "Grand Jury Prize" award at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival, won the "Jury Special Prize" at the Deauville Film Festival, and was a featured film at the 2005 Traverse City Film Festival.

The film's release in the U.S. was limited, reaching a peak of just 84 theaters. Despite being advertised in cinemas in the UK for several months, the film had a very limited release in the UK due to its sensitive nature. Its gross in the US was $1.5 million, while its worldwide gross totaled $4.5 million.

ee also

*List of films portraying paedophilia or sexual abuse of minors

External links

* [http://www.thewoodsmanfilm.com/ Official site]
*imdb title|361127
* [http://movies.about.com/od/thewoodsman/a/woodskb122204.htm Interview with Kevin Bacon] about "The Woodsman"