Themes: Starting Over, Haunted By the Past, Going Straight
Main Cast: Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick, Eve, Mos Def, David Alan Grier, Benjamin Bratt
Release Year: 2004
Country: US
Run Time: 85 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Writer/director Nicole Kassell makes her feature film debut with the drama The Woodsman. Co-written by Steven Fechter, the original script won first place at the Slamdance Screenplay Competition in 2001. Kevin Bacon plays Walter, a child molester who gets out of prison after serving a 12-year sentence. He returns to his old town and tries to start over by working at a woodyard. Fortunately, his brother-in-law (Benjamin Bratt) helps him get a place to live. He even strikes up a relationship with local gal Vickie (Bacon's real-life wife, Kyra Sedgwick). However, Walter still struggles with his past and the suspicions of co-worker Mary-Kay (Eve) and Detective Lucas (Mos Def). The Woodsman premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2004 as part of the dramatic competition. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
Review
The "sympathetic pedophile" was purely an oxymoron before Todd Solondz, who included a repugnant -- yet strangely pitiable -- child molester as part of his 1998 ensemble film Happiness. Now, Nicole Kassell dares to make such a person not only the central character, but the protagonist, in The Woodsman, adapted from Steven Fechter's play. Critics had a lot of trouble with this film, some accusing it of letting Walter Rossworth off too easy, others grappling with their discomfort over being so personally confronted by the inner workings of his sickness. But if Kassell paints in broad strokes, it's because the audience needs some amount of spoon-feeding to comprehend such damnable sins, which get disqualified from any normal notion of forgiveness. If there are some formulaic characters, obvious symbols, and maybe a few seemingly pat answers, it's because this type of film is so unfamiliar to audiences, it need not be more than the prototypical case study of the child molester's return to society. At its core, the film asks, "Now what?" Families of pedophiles -- and their victims -- deal with this every day, just never on film. Kevin Bacon's portrayal is anything but simple, though it may be quiet, quivering, and at times shell-shocked. Kassell wants the audience to open up to him, but she's not about to make him a saint, leaving the perversions of his past dangerously close to the surface. The secondary, more pernicious molester stalking the nearby elementary school is too blunt a narrative device, and some viewers will undoubtedly be troubled by the character arc of Walter's new girlfriend, played by Bacon's real-world wife, Kyra Sedgwick. However viewers ultimately feel about Walter Rossworth, The Woodsman is sure to open a dialogue about the possibility of rehabilitation and the sincerity of regret. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
Bacon plays Walter, a convicted child molester returning home to Philadelphia after a 12-year stint in prison. Walter finds that his friends and family have abandoned him, with the exception of his brother-in-law, Carlos (Benjamin Bratt). He gets a job at a lumber mill, where he meets Vicki (Kyra Sedgwick), one of the few women working at the mill, who quickly sleeps with him. She initially rejects him after learning of his past, but eventually becomes his girlfriend, convinced that he is a good man at heart.
Walter receives frequent visits from a verbally abusive cop named Lucas (Mos Def), whose role is to make sure Walter is staying away from children.
Now that he is out of prison, Walter must learn to deal with the community's contempt and avoid temptation, including an elementary school across the street from his apartment and a young bird-watcher, Robin (Hannah Pilkes). He also comes to suspect that a man he has seen watching children near his apartment building is also a child molester. Over the course of the film, Walter observes the man (Kevin Rice) offering young boys candy, chatting them up, and abducting them. Walter nicknames the man "Candy".
Walter's life takes a further downturn when a suspicious coworker (Eve) learns of his crimes and alerts the entire mill. Seeking "relief", Walter goes to the park and attempts to molest Robin — who then reveals that her father is abusing her. Finally realizing the damage he has caused, Walter relents and lets her go. On his way home, he sees Candy dropping off a young boy at his school at night. In a fit of rage and self-hatred, Walter beats Candy so badly he fractures his jaw.
Soon after, Lucas visits Walter's apartment as he is packing to move in with Vicki and tells him that a man was beaten across the street the night before, asks if he heard anything. He tells Walter that the boy can make a positive ID of the assailant, and that the victim is wanted in Virginia for raping a young boy, clearing Walter's conscience. Walter later meets his sister, who he hasn't seen in years, and she becomes very angry and leaves him. As the movie closes, in a voiceover discussion with his therapist (Michael Shannon), Walter explains that he understands and accepts her anger, and expresses optimism for his own future.
Production
The movie was shot in Philadelphia, which is the hometown of cast members Kevin Bacon, and Eve, as well as the birthplace of director Nicole Kassell, and producer Lee Daniels. Due in whole or in part to this, Bacon chose to speak with a thicker Philadelphia accent than he has, because he thought it was essential to the character.
Response
The film was well-received critically, with Bacon's performance in particular drawing praise. It was nominated for the "Grand Jury Prize" award at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival, won the "Jury Special Prize" at the Deauville Film Festival, and was a featured film at the 2005 Traverse City Film Festival.
The film's release in the U.S. was limited, reaching a peak of 84 theaters. Despite being advertised in cinemas in the UK for several months, the film had a very limited release in the UK due to its sensitive nature. Its gross in the US was $1.5 million, while its worldwide gross totaled $4.5 million.
