Jake Gyllenhall is my new hero. 

No, really he is. The brooding detective in Prisoners. His performance, in my opinion, stole the show. I actually went to see Hugh Jackman’s performance and was basically captivated by Gyllenhaal’s. Now, I don’t use those words lightly–hero, captivated. I don’t normally talk like that.

I put this movie up there with Silence of the Lambs. It was that good with incredible characters and a richly complex and perfectly woven plot. I was so happy when I saw the high ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, because this was one movie where the preview had me, but I won’t go if Tomatoes splats it.  

Anyway, I’m not going to summarize the plot. I don’t see the point. I will summarize Jake Gyllenhaal’s Detective Loki performance though. 

Riveting.

Let me delve. Here is the neo-archetype. The new cop hero, part street punk, part forensics genius and expert clue hunter and most importantly, here is the younger generation’s exemplar attuned to the criminally insane just enough to understand them, just enough to know them, and just enough to be haunted by them and the ugly things they do.

Brooding, soft-spoken, marked, perhaps, by the signs of a life begun on the streets and passionate about one thing: his job.  

I would see this movie again just for that. 

They should make more movies with this Detective Loki played by Jake Gyllenhaal.

I feel safer already.