Sam Raimi, of course, directed the three Spider-Man flicks for Columbia and is eying a fourth one that is being written by James Vanderbilt. Raimi is also aligned to reinvent the Jack Ryan franchise at Paramount.

Books by the ever increasingly popular author, Dennis Lehane, can’t seem to be adapted fast enough after a string of successful and critically acclaimed (and soon to be critically acclaimed) film adaptations have put the author on the map. Clint Eastwood directed Mystic River, while Ben Affleck made his directing debut on Gone Baby Gone. Martin Scorsese has nearly completed production on Shutter Island with Leonardo DiCaprio in the starring role.

“The Given Day” is set in 1919 Boston, with the city in turmoil as soldiers are returning home from WWI, having brought back an epidemic of Spanish influenza. Attempts to unionize the police department have set the stage for a historic strike and two cops take center stage. “While it deals with many of the same themes as (Lehane’s) earlier work, it is also his most ambitious book, tying events of a century ago to the subjects we struggle with today,” Raimi said.

No timeline for the adaptation was given.

Ben Affleck made a better choice in his directorial debut than he has in a lot of the movies he’s been in lately.

Gone Baby Gone stars his brother, Casey Affleck, who has been quite a few movies that I’ve enjoyed, like Good Will Hunting, Last Kiss and Gerry. This seems to be the first one that he’s been the legitimate lead. He’s becoming one of the better actors out there and one of my personal favorites.

Gone Baby Gone is based off the Dennis Lehane book, who also wrote Mystic River, which ended up being an Oscar winning film. Baby Gone is almost exactly like Mystic River, with the same look and feel. It’s set in Boston suburbs, just like Good Will Hunting and definitely has that kind of feel to it, aided by the darkness that was Mystic River.

The story revolves around a kidnapped three or four year old girl that has the neighborhood shook. With the cops looking for her, led by police chief Morgan Freeman, the family asks for help from local private investigators, Affleck and his girlfriend, played by Michelle Monaghan.

As they delve deeper into the story and are helped by Ed Harris and his partner, who are detectives on the police force, they uncover clues and more mystery.

The pace of the film feels kind of slow, but it’s really not and there are some very intense action scenes that will make you jump. I rarely get caught off-guard in movies, but I jumped at least twice in this one.

The movie has the feel of a good Indie flick, meaning it doesn’t seem to care about a happy ending, it’s much more focused on the message and conflict it’s trying to portray. Some times the decisions we make seem like the right ones, yet have consequences. Not everything in life is wrapped up nice and tidy.

Definitely one of the better films of the year, but it’s a step below what Michael Clayton was. I read somewhere that Ben relied a bit too much on shots of the “neighborhood” because maybe he wasn’t sure what else to do, and in that regard, it has a slight feel at times of being too obvious. Like “here are your obligatory shots of people doing things in Boston.”

But the plot is great, there are twists and turns and surprises. It’s barely two hours, so it doesn’t feel too long.