The Son of No One is a film that has a decent idea for a plot...but the execution is muddled and the ending, when you think about it, doesn't entirely make sense. Additionally, it's a film with leaden pacing and acting...and overall it's just not particularly enjoyable to watch.

The story bounces back and forth in time from 1986 to 2001. A cop grew up in a horrible neighborhood and he ended up killing two people in the course of just a couple days. But in both cases, the kid was NOT responsible for murder and the killings were in self-defense. But, as a kid, he and his friends didn't realize he should admit to it and tell the police.

Many years pass. Now that boy has grown and is a cop. And, out of the blue, someone starts sending letters to him and a reporter...saying the police blew the case and he knows he's responsible. Who did this? And, how will the police department deal with it?

If you want a film to glorify the police, then this certainly ain't the movie for you! I didn't mind this dark look at police....but I did mind the pacing and logical leaps in the film. These just didn't make sense. And, incidentally, Al Pacino was pretty much wasted in the process as pretty much anyone could have played this role. Overall, watchable at best.

A young cop (Channing Tatum) is assigned to a precinct in the working class neighborhood where he grew up, and an old secret threatens to destroy his life and his family.

The basic story here is pretty good, and with Al Pacino and Ray Liotta on board, it should be hard to fail. But this film just comes up short. It has a few too many flashbacks, too many clichés about corrupt cops. And it makes a much bigger deal out of a situation than need be. It conflates the word "murder".

Maybe a fine-tuning of the script would have made this film a winner. And probably casting anyone else in the world besides Katie Holmes would have helped.

A rookie cop (Channing Tatum) is assigned to the 118 Precinct in the same district where he grew up. The Precinct Captain starts receiving letters about two unsolved murders that happened many years ago in the housing projects when the rookie cop was just a kid.

This started off well for about 45 minutes. It has a pretty good police drama feel, and it has a great cast. With Al Pacino and Ray Liotta, what could possibly go wrong. But then the story goes to a police cover-up 15 years ago and it grinds to a halt. There whole thing has no tension. I'm not even sure if it made complete sense. It's a big disappointment.