The Quarry

Shea Whigham and Michael Shannon are at their world class best. In particular Whigham playing the conflicted criminal who assumes the identity of the cleric he murders. The story itself is a slow burner with some holes but the performance of the leads are captivating.

The story is engaging because you see how one person's mistake affects the lives of others. The morality and also the irony in the story are remarkable, making the film thought provoking.

No idea why this film has got so many bad reviews! Thoroughly enjoyed this film from beginning to end. As a fan of Michael Shannon I was not disappointed, and Shea Whigham was just as good as co-lead. Nicely shot, well acted film. It is slow paced , but that doesn't mean that there wasn't anything happening. It was a nice slice of life kind of film. Totally baffled at the negative remarks!

Shea Wigham's best role I think. I saw him first in True Detective and thought he was amazing, nothing short of tour de force! I think he also played a preacher in that one too. He just gets better and better. Michael Shannon is another tour de force type of actor. He's great as the sheriff. He can play any character and he's just a natural, I love his movies. The movie shifts into high gear and when it was over, I kept thinking "This style of movie mystery is like an old fashioned killer movie from the old days." It's just plain good and intriguing til the last minute. I absolutely loved the storyline, script, the acting was superb, especially Shea Wigham. His best acting performance I think. It had to have been someone with style and class bcz he took over a preacher's identity and preached to the parishioners. Simply amazing. The ending was intense as well. Do not miss it, take look at Shea Wighams performance. He might deserve an Oscar for this one, I'm not sure. He definitely nailed his character down amazingly.

'The Quarry' is a prime example of style over substance. This is actually a beautifully shot and wonderfully acted film. Where it lets itself down is the story. The plot is so lacking in depth and creativity that it makes for an extremely long and dull 100 minute runtime. I kept hoping for some kind of twist or unexpected turn in the story that would add some life to the proceedings. Sadly, it never came.

The one thing that keeps the film watchable is the acting, and in particular Michael Shannon. The film gets off to a very slow and understated start and to be honest I wasn't sure if I was going to able to stay awake for the entire movie. Then Shannon was introduced to the film and suddenly things picked up a lot and became a lot more watchable. Part of the reason is that his character is the only one in the film that actually has any character, but the other part is just down to some very fine acting on Shannon's part.

The big problem with 'The Quarry' is that everything is on the surface, everything is known to the audience. There is no mystery or intrigue. The only thing we can wonder about is how the film will conclude, but the story isn't really interesting enough for us to care much about that either. One compliment I can give the film is that is doesn't outstay its welcome. I've seen films similar to this that like to push the two hour boundary and they become unbearable. Still though, I'm sorry to say 'The Quarry' was a pretty forgettable experience.