The Woodsman

2004 "Nothing can undo the past."
7.1| 1h27m| R| en| More Info
Released: 24 December 2004 Released
Producted By: Lee Daniels Entertainment
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
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After twelve years in prison, Walter returns home. His family has abandoned him, save for his brother-in-law. Few know he's a sex offender and pedophile. Walter finds an apartment and is regularly visited by his parole officer. He gets a job at a lumber mill and starts seeing a coworker. Then his new world begins to unravel; as his past becomes known, he strikes up a high-risk friendship with a young girl and realizes that a man loitering near a schoolyard is a child molester prowling for his next victim.

Genre

Drama, Crime

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Director

Nicole Kassell

Production Companies

Lee Daniels Entertainment

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The Woodsman Audience Reviews

Rijndri Load of rubbish!!
ThedevilChoose When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.
SanEat A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."
Taha Avalos The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.
Tarek Shabana The Woodsman I believe is a very important film that opens our eyes and allows us to sympathize with even the most despicable people: pedophiles. The story follows Walter (Kevin Bacon) after his release from a 12 year sentence for child molesting and his struggle to fit in the community again and be "normal." We have no sympathy for his 12 year imprisonment, nor should we, however we do, at times, begin to sympathize with Walter throughout his reentering into the community. But our sympathy is met with a dilemma, brought on by Sgt. Lucas (Yasiin Bay) and Walter's co-worker Mary Kay. Mary realizes that there is something wrong with Walter, so she starts digging and finds out about his history and why he was sent to prison. She feels a morale obligation to notify everyone of this. Now she may have come off as low trash by doing that, but was she wrong to do it? Shouldn't people know this, to be more cautious with their kids around him? Then we have Sgt. Lucas, who is very cynical of and loathes and degrades people like Walter, as do most people, and we can't help but agree, whenever Lucas visits Walter we're always taking his side. But when Walter is alone and we see that shame, that self hate in his eyes, we can see and understand something more. We begin to see the true evil here, it is not the pedophile, it is pedophilia, and Walter is cursed with it. This is true for a lot of forms of evil, it is not the rapper that is the enemy, it is the lust which leads to rape, the greed that leads to corruption, and so on. This in no way excuses the person who carries out these actions, but understanding this helps us view and treat these people in a more human and empathetic manner.
Anthony Iessi Parts of the film shine tremendously in the performance of Kevin Bacon, as well a long scene with a little girl that is truly heartbreaking and shocking. But the rest of the film doesn't live up to the greatness of these two performances. The other characters of the film are conventional, and the pace is maddeningly slow, but that perhaps was on purpose. This was a fairly unusual and disturbing subject to make into a film in 2004, but by today's standards, especially with the over saturation of technology and the ever increasing conversation about pedophilia, the chilling nature of the film has decreased over time. But what is timeless is how creepy it is.
halljohnanthony Without question, this is THE BEST performance by anyone I have ever seen. I think for Mr Bacon to have taken this role was a courageous and brave thing. Such raw subject matter so brilliantly handled.I don't do 'celebrity fandom' but for this film, Kevin and the entire cast have my respect. Bloody well done all!
dushyant chaturvedi This is an incredibly brave role for Kevin Bacon. He plays a child molester who comes back to his hometown after being incarcerated for 12 years. He gets a room in front of the local school. A woman befriends him at his work place. Another is offended by his lack of interest towards her. He has a sister who doesn't want to meet him. There is a policeman who comes up to his place to abuse him. He has started showing interest towards a 12 year old girl who he sees on the bus. Meanwhile, Bacon might have spotted another child molester active in the area. The movie, based on a play by Steven Fechter, is frankly amazing. I appreciate those dramas which move with the pacing of thrillers. It is edited brilliantly and at just above 80 minutes it is very absorbing. The performance by Bacon is for me his second best after Murder in the First. He truly gets inside the skin of the character and the viewer sympathizes with the molester almost from the beginning. The haunted look on his face is to be seen to be believed. Kyra Sedgwick as his love interest is good. Mos Def is surprisingly efficient as the police officer who has his suspicions.The movie is very highly recommended for all drama lovers. The subject matter seems to be the only reason Bacon did not get an Oscar nomination. 4 out of 5 for the Woodsman. Truly fantastic. Way beyond expectations.