Good police work can draw upon very different, even opposing characteristics: an indefatigable work ethic and desire for justice, but also a deep understanding of the criminal mind that, at times, stems directly from some terrible corruption lurking within one's own psyche. The anti-hero of Josh C. Waller's McCanick is an uneasy blend of such characteristics — he's a good cop with a very dark side.

Eugene "Mack" McCanick (David Morse) is a hothead trying to keep his cool — and an addict trying to stay sober. It's his birthday, and he plans to spend it laying low and making efforts to patch things up with his estranged son. When he learns that Simon Weeks (the late Cory Monteith, in one of his final film performances), a young man he helped put away seven years ago, is out on the streets again, his focus becomes seriously divided. He invents a story to convince his partner (Mike Vogel) to join him in a search for Weeks, one involving unorthodox interrogation techniques and, in the end, a tragic accident. McCanick is forced to tell one lie after another to cover his tracks. All the while, he conducts a private search for Weeks, leading him toward a harrowing confrontation — and a revelation about his past that he is nowhere near ready to deal with.

With a strong supporting cast that includes Irish actor Ciarán Hinds (also at the Festival in The Sea), this tough, suspenseful action-drama is a showcase for Morse's near-palpable intensity and Monteith's streetwise charisma. The film's conclusion poses difficult questions about the limits of forgiveness and the consequences of suppressing emotions, and will surely prompt conversations long after the credits roll.

Jane Schoettle