Most audiences regard film as a purely escapist medium and venture out to multiplexes week after week seeking distraction from the ubiquitous stress of everyday life. Also, the most eminently popular films tend to paint with broad strokes and center on dependable characters with whom one can relate; audiences gravitate toward movies in which the conflict is familiar and the moral complications are simplistic.
Nicole Kassell's debut \The Woodsman,"" a film with a pedophile for a protagonist, is a courageous, thoughtful effort that explores a complex perspective rarely glimpsed in cinema and is consequently destined for financial failure.
Sex offenders, especially pederasts, are considered the lowest of the low in society and while the law does not punish them as severely as some other criminals, they are universally despised.
The silver screen reflects this mindset to the extreme; a vicious serial killer is far preferable to a gawking child molester, and any attempt to humanize the latter is a bold undertaking. ""The Woodsman"" is the second prominent film to do so this decade-Todd Solondz's ""Happiness"" being the other-and is the first with the audacity to concentrate solely on the pedophile.
""The Woodsman"" is first and foremost a brooding, grim character study of Walter (Kevin Bacon), a deeply troubled man struggling to find a place in society after 12 years in prison. He works at a lumberyard in Philadelphia, spends his time gazing at the elementary school across the street, and is visited only by his cautiously sympathetic brother-in-law (Benjamin Bratt) and a meddlesome cop (Mos Def). We learn through therapy sessions that Walter desperately craves a normal life free of deviant desire; he is as disgusted with himself as we are with him. A tentative romance with a vivacious co-worker (Bacon's real-life wife Kyra Sedgwick) seems to represent a step forward, but after observing Walter in any given scene, we can see that his disturbing lust for little girls consumes his every thought and will not be easily overcome.
While Kassell and Bacon choose to emphasize Walter's potentially redemptive qualities, they refuse to shy away from the inherent dreadfulness of his crimes. He insists that he never meant to hurt any of his victims and perpetually yearns for his urges to stop recurring, but any undue sympathy is lost whenever Walter trains his perverted eye on an innocent girl. It is difficult to regard someone like Walter with anything but disgust, but Kassell's direction and Bacon's gripping performance transform his urges into a compelling internal conflict. A standout scene in which Walter has the opportunity to molest a girl in a park illustrates this perfectly; what could have been merely unpleasant and queasy becomes a suspenseful yet squirm-inducing scene in which viewers find themselves hoping that Walter's conscience overcomes his temptation.
Kevin Bacon has a quietly commanding presence in ""The Woodsman,"" adding depth and humanity to a person most would write off as disgusting and irredeemable. This is the second time he's played a pedophile (the first being his one-dimensional turn as a sadistic prison guard in ""Sleepers""), and it is his most fearless performance. He is aided by Kassell's mostly steady direction and somber atmospherics and by a decent supporting cast.
However, some individual scenes involving the romance and Walter's relationship with his brother-in-law are noticeably contrived. As a result, Sedgwick and Bratt do not register as effectively as they might have.
Most surprisingly, rapper Mos Def gives what is far and away the best supporting performance in the film. ""The Woodsman"" is at its strongest whenever Def is onscreen. The best scene in the movie involves Def's lengthy rumination about the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale, which ties together the allegorical aspects of the film. If the character of Sgt. Lucas were fleshed out more it would have warranted an Oscar nomination.
""The Woodsman"" is hindered by contrivances and a reliance on character relationships that are not always wholly convincing, but with a wonderfully meditative and subdued leading performance, it makes for a gutsy, thought-provoking debut. It is reserved but ultimately effective, and while it may not have the longevity that the far more powerful ""Happiness"" has, it has the cojones to unflinchingly look at a complex issue without trying to simplify it. It will garner countless critical kudos, but will most likely be ignored by the general public due to its palpably unpalatable subject matter. ""The Woodsman"" is a disturbing but ultimately rewarding film that treads on infrequently traveled terrain with uncommon grace and dignity.
