If Mel Gibson didn’t have an edge of darkness in him, he wouldn’t be perfect such a role as this. A detective who’s lost his activist daughter by way of corporate espionage shotgun blast right at his front door when she comes to visit (I didn’t give this away, it was in the trailer). It’s all pretty and nice until that happens and suddenly it’s yet another thriller action flick starring Mel Gibson — or is it?

Corporate espionage is a fascinating subject and Hollywood knows that it’ll bring the intellectual out to the theaters (or at least to the DVD store). From Michael Clayton to the International to the Constant Gardener, the past decade alone has brought us some good films that have decidedly cast a darker shadow on the big guys. E! Online says it’s simply “more paranoia from Mel Gibson”, but I’m not exactly sure what they’re referring to. The only conspiracy movie that stands out in my mind is conspiracy theory, and it’s not even that serious of a movie. Edge of Darkness, on the other hand, looks fairly original, less demeaning and more mentally stimulating, and it’s not surprising with the director of Casino Royale and screenwriter of The Departed (not to mention Ray Winstone who’s career as an actor is full of strong supporting roles which he always pulls off with ease).

It’s nice to see Gibson acting again, though, and taking a break from producing. He outdoes himself in his work as a producer on Passion of the Christ and Apocalyptico — both movies are extreme, but incredibly artistic for a Hollywood hunk. Some would disagree with me on this, but he’s not a terrible, nor even a mediocre talent. His acting in Payback might be his darkest and in Edge of Darkness he seems to have a similar damaged persona going on.  What I like from the trailer is that there appears to be some strong development of his relationship with his daughter before the murder. Whether or not this is carried out too briefly in the actual film is what I’m afraid of.

While trailers are meant to double as a quick plot summary and marketing tool, there are some unfortunate cliche taglines in Mel Gibson’s dialogue that make me roll my eyes, such as “Fasten your seatbelt” and “I’m a guy with nothing to lose”.  But then there’s a good one towards the end that, while may be corny, works real well if this is to be a dirty harry sorta thing:  “You gotta decide if you’re the one on the cross.. or the guy bangin’ in the nails.”  Haven’t had enough of Jesus yet, Mel?

In one clip, Gibson’s character knocks over an operating table in a room where a doctor with a face-mask is, alluding to the possibility that the cover-up he is uncovering is led by powerful men who find it necessary to alter his brain chemistry or otherwise mess with his body to aid their corruption. This sort of conspiracy always makes me wonder why the evil-doers would go that far if they could just kill the guy and be done with it, especially when there’s all sorts of other killing going on. Alas, we shall have to wait to find out just how important it is to them for him to stay alive and, as a fan of conspiracy theories, I think it’ll be worth the wait.