I didn’t know what to expect when I stepped into the theater to see “STONE”, probably because I saw absolutely no advertisements, but I did know Robert De Niro and Edward Norton, two of my favorite actors were in the movie and that was enough for me.
De Niro plays burnt out curmudgeony parole officer Jack Mabray, who is wrapping up his cases weeks away from sailing into retirement. Norton plays Gerald “Stone” Creeson, a convicted arsonist who torched his grandparents house after they were murdered by his friend. Sounds pleasant, doesn’t it? Stone is up for parole and Mabray (De Niro) has little sympathy as Stone pleads for an early release. Realizing that he’s getting nowhere fast and might end up in prison for a few more years, Stone conspires with his wife, Lucetta (Milla Jovovich), to seduce Mabray into his early release. At first Mabray resists the persistent sexy and seductive Lucetta, but decades of boredom in a mundane marriage leads to erotic carnal pleasure for both. In the meantime, Stone finds a pamphlet for a cultish, pop-psychological religion and gets drawn into pseudo-mysticism trying to engage Mabray in discussions about God and life. It seems like Maybray’s tired of talking about God having been unhappily married to his Bible-thumping wife Madylyn (played skillfully by Frances Conroy) for far too many years.
In the end, Stone gets what he wanted all along – his freedom and his wife, and Mabray gets two big unexpected surprises.
Although the performances in this dark and unappealing film are solid - De Niro is, well, De Niro and Edward Norton plays Stone with conviction, strength and menace - the one bright spot in this morbid tale is Milla Jovovich’s spirited performance. Jovovich emerges as the film’s driving force.; sexy, seductive, mysterious and a little kooky. Unfortunately it’s not enough to keep this one in the theaters and there will probably be no demand On Demand. Don’t bother getting “STONE’d” because you won’t get high.
Danny Margosis is a writer/producer for sitcoms and movies in Hollywood. Originally from New York, Danny has written for “Designing Women”, “Living Single” and “High Society” throughout his 28-year career. Also, he wrote the romantic comedy Good Advice with Charlie Sheen and Angie Harmon.
Currently, he works at StarCam as the VP of Talent. If you are a star who wants to be on StarCam, he’s the man to talk to.