Ray Donovan: The Movie

Movie captured the heart of the series, as best you can in 100 minutes. Flashbacks used well and are obviously necessary as opposed to some opinions here. If you were a fan of this excellent series, you should be satisfied. Acting superb as always.

Ray Donovan is one of the best HBO series, and one of my favorites of the last couple years. This movie is a great send-off and ties up all the loose ends. Liev Schreiber is great as Ray, and the rest of the cast holds their own and can own a scene from time to time. But, Jon Voight is a showstopper as Mickey. He is vitty and funny, with slick slapstick Irish mannerisms. His character is either in the wrong place at the wrong time or in the right place at the right time. In both situations, there's always something going wrong, even if he's in control.

This movie puts the main focus on childhood trauma and guilt, which has always been one of the main themes in the show. It is well-paced, visually good looking, and the actors haven't lost their step. I was skeptical at first, but seeing the Donovan family again and resolving or at least erasing issues that have plagued them for years is a great service for me as a fan. This is worth a watch. I enjoyed it.

"Ray Donovan: The Movie" picks up where season 7 ended. Ray's father Mickey (Jon Voight) on the run with valuable documents belonging to the Donovans' long-time rivals, the Sullivan clan, while Ray (Liev Schreiber) and his brothers Terry (Eddie Marsan), Bunchy (Dash Mihok) and Daryll (Pooch Hall) are dealing with the usual questions of fate and a haunted past from which they'll never quite escape. Ray's daughter Bridget (Kerris Dorsey) has been left a young widow after her husband Smitty (Graham Rogers) was collateral damage in yet another shootout involving the Donovans. Outstanding acting performance from the whole cast, and Live Schreiber´s best role of his career. With this movie, Ray gets the send-off he deserves. Like his daughter Bridget in the movie says: "It had to stop, it had to end". Ray, we will miss you!

Perhaps it's the prodigious amount of whiskey consumed, but I really liked this show. There was something gritty and real about the character portrayal - even when there were some fantastical plot lines.

Ray Donovan: The Movie brought closure and explanation to the back story and a final exposition of threads from the series that had been left somewhat unresolved. And, these were wrapped up Donovan style - a mixture of pain and joy, with a thick vein of tragedy to wash it down. It wasn't easy, but it was satisfying.

I was glad of the opportunity to have one last dip into this world.

So a final doff of the cap to an amazing ensemble (and crew) that managed to bring this world to life with convincing honesty - it's been quite a ride!

I don't usually like to single out actors from a tight ensemble, but upon reflection, in this case I feel compelled to. Two characters and their amazing actors provided a solid base for this series, their work anchoring the ensemble. Eddie Marsan as Terry, an extraordinary performance that must have been completely exhausting. And then there is John Voight as Mickey. For sure Voight had good material to work with, but Voight surely makes the point that great actors get better with age - what an absolute legend - loved him hated him, respected him, loathed him - he took us on the full heroes journey, fatal flaws and all.

Edit: And one more thing. To their enduring credit, the writer's introduced the main themes that play out over the length of this show (all 7 seasons) in its opening episode, season 1 episode 1. Apart from the fact that that provides the actors with a solid grounding for their characters, that foresight and depth deserves recognition in its own right.

This is a movie that will only please the fans of the excellent show Ray Donovan. I can't see anyone enjoying this movie if they didn't watch the series before, it's almost impossible to understand then. But if you did, this movie is a good farewell. I enjoyed all the seven seasons of Ray Donovan, a show that got better with the years, with excellent characters, like Mickey, Bunchy, Terry and Ray. The movie is clearly the end of the show, that we will all miss but to everything comes an end and they couldn't have it done better than with this movie.