Matt Craven

In his most effective thriller since Enemy of the State, Tony Scott makes time travel seem plausible. It helps that his New Orleans hero, ATF agent Doug Carlin (Denzel Washington in his third go-round with the director), spends more time in the present than the past. In order to catch a terrorist, FBI Agent Pryzwarra (Val Kilmer) invites Carlin to join forces. They have the technology to see the past. He has the expertise to interpret the data. Unfortunately, the bomb has already gone off and hundreds of ferry passengers have died.

Most thrillers can be judged on their plots, but with The Clearing the plot is only a frame for three excellent performances. The story is driven by the kidnapping of a retired businessman (Robert Redford) by a former disgruntled employee (Willem Dafoe, Shadow of the Vampire). But while half of the movie follows these two men as they wend their way towards a cabin in the woods, the other half observes the businessman's wife (Helen Mirren, the Prime Suspect series) as she copes with both the kidnapping and the secrets it accidentally reveals.