Jesse Stone: Night Passage

In this prequel movie Jesse Stone: Night Passage we learn how Jesse Stone became the new police chief of Paradise, Massachusetts. Tom Selleck has not yet begun to deal with his alcohol problem and in fact his police instincts are aroused when the town council actually hires him when he shows up with booze on his breath.

The first two cases that Selleck deals with are linked. He goes to a domestic dispute where Stephen Baldwin is not honoring a restraining order against his estranged wife. Selleck nails him below decks to get his attention and make a point. Then Mike Starr the former police chief of Paradise is found dead off a cliff at the ocean shore in his car. It takes a while to determine, but these cases are inextricably linked.

Tom Selleck shows a considerable range and maturity in age and craft as he plays Jesse Stone. This is not a perfect and he's a most serious individual, light years away from flip detective Thomas Magnum.

The rest of the characters from the town including the other three members of the police force, Viola Davis, Kohl Sudduth, and Vito Rezza are all introduced. As is town attorney Polly Shannon who begins a long term relationship with Selleck.

Fans of Robert B. Parker novels and of Tom Selleck should be very pleased with this film.

Comments not just for 'Night Passage': My wife and I have quickly noticed a recent ground-swell of others who've keenly picked up on this wonderful CBS-released series with Tom Selleck, Kathy Baker and the ever-entertaining Kohl Sudduth as 'Suit(case)' Simpson. The scripts, dialogs, excellent camera-work, the wonderful lighting, directing, staging ...and the supreme mood created with Jeff Beal's superb music, all set a complete and satisfying tone for enjoying one of the, IMHO, best series ever produced for television, bar none. Selleck, in his maturity, is a great performer in character (he has done so well in recent westerns - which we rarely get to see enough of from today's 'Wacky' Follywood!) and as the 'recovering' scotch-drinking sheriff in the sleepy-but-up-tight New England town he slides into from his former LA police job on his 'last stop', his character lives up to the ideal that Robert Parker must have envisioned in his books. Sandie and I encourage you to try out some of television's best in today's cocky world with the 'Jesse Stone' series. Quality is still among us, believe it or not, and we believe you'll be very pleasantly surprised with the efforts. We now own all 7 DVDs including 'Innocence Lost', and watch them frequently when we need to get away from the world from time-to-time. I, personally, think you'll find them 'timeless.' Watch 'Jesse Stone' - become a believer again.

From 2006, Jesse Stone: Night Passage introduces us to the characters in the subsequent films, and shows how Jesse came to be Sheriff of Paradise.

When the beloved Sheriff Lou Carson (Mike Starr) retires, Jesse Stone, who lost his job with LA Homicide for drinking on the job, is invited to interview. Jesse loads his dog Boomer into his truck and drives from LA to Massachusetts in order to interview. When he lands the job, he's instantly suspicious. "I wouldn't hire me," he says.

He uncovers corruption, which ultimately leads to murders.

Viola Davis is Molly Crane, who works in the Sheriff's office, as does Suitcase (Kohl Sudduth), Hasty Hathaway (Saul Rubinek) is head of the town council responsible for hiring Stone; Stephen Baldwin is wife beater and general bad guy Joe Genest; and Polly Shannon (Abby Taylor) is a woman Stone is seeing.

The Stone films are dark, and this one is especially sad. Good performances, though I'm not sure I would have cast Tom Selleck in such a dour part. He's always likable, but I'm not sure he's creating a specific character here, rather, just a generic depressed person.

I looked forward to the first Jesse Stone film with positive anticipation, being a big fan of Robert Parker's books and brilliant written dialogue. I thought some younger actor who plays "outwardly stoic, inwardly thoughtful" like Viggo Mortenson or maybe a Chris Noth type would probably be cast, and was pleasantly surprised by Selleck. The questions Parker poses in the running dialogue between Stone and his estranged wife in the books seem a bit "young" for someone Selleck's actual age, but he is able to play 10-15 years younger than himself, making it all quite believable. The good work continued in this film, and Selleck especially tosses off the Parker dialogue very believably. (If you don't recognize or appreciate what I mean about the dialogue, pick any consecutive three or so of the Spenser novels and read them in order; the economy, wit, and "realness" of the dialogue is not often matched in current writing.) The next film should be fun!

Other reviews have addressed details about each installment very well, so I'll stick to overall comments.

I think this has to be some of Selleck's best work. "Think" because I haven't watched any TV to speak of since 1994. His performance throughout is multifaceted, nuanced, and just plain excellent. His Jesse Stone character exudes an honesty, a fairness, and an unswerving loyalty to principle, traits I suspect run through Selleck himself.

He has a real stake in the series - he's listed as Executive Producer - and it shows.

After Selleck himself, what defines the series are the supporting players. I can't remember a single weak performance, and I've been though the whole series several times. Recurring standouts are William "Nobody rides a horse like Monte Walsh" Devane (Dr. Dix), Steven McHattie (Captain Healey), Kohl Sudduth (Luther "Suitcase" Simpson), and especially William Sadler (Gino Fish).

Mention must be made of Stone's dogs, who are very important and integral characters throughout the series - in unexpected and novel ways.

Highly recommended.