Edge of Darkness / Edge of Darkness is Mel Gibson’s first lead role since Signs and also since–for lack of a better euphemism–losing his damned fool mind. Heck, the actor’s behavior was beginning to make one think he was a Shyamalan extra-terrestrial.

On the surface, this potboiler seems like the perfect vehicle for Gibson’s return. Thomas Craven (Gibson) is a career cop whose beloved daughter Emma arrives for a visit. He’s a bachelor; “You’re my girl,” he tells her, and already Mel demonstrates a certain likability which makes one overlook the potential creepiness of a father saying this line to his daughter. Within the film’s first five minutes, though, poor Emma is blasted into oblivion before Craven’s eyes. It is suspected that an old enemy of the policeman has come to settle a score and his offspring was the unintended target. But when looking through Emma’s things, Craven finds a gun and realizes his daughter may have been involved in something more nefarious than a family visit. Faster than you can say Ransom, the grieved cop goes out for revenge.

This is how we like our star of Mad Max and Lethal Weapon: swinging into a furious animal rage and doling out feral vengeance. It’s to Gibson’s credit that he makes us forget his highly publicized marital woes and his even more troublesome penchant for screaming racial slurs while being arrested for drunk driving. The hard years show on the actor’s face, too; his features are a little droopier and the lines are deep like eroded canyons. The initially jarring signs of age work for his character and we root for him to kick ass and not bother to take names. Unfortunately, he does take names before doling out the butt-whooping. So many names that whatever charge we got at seeing Mel out for justice dissipates and we are reduced to counting his wrinkles.

Martin Campbell (Casino Royale, The Mask of Zorro) tries his darndest to keep things exciting. Every death, especially the ones by firearm or by car, take us completely by surprise. Loud blasts of bullets jolt us out of our seats during scenes of peaceful dialogue as do screeching killer vehicles that come racing out of nowhere. We could have used more scenes like these. Instead we sit through suspect after suspect, all being asked the same questions. Perhaps the convoluted conspiracy plot involving eco-terrorism, government cover-ups and nuclear arms would have worked better in the project’s original format–Edge of Darkness is based on a BBC miniseries. The resulting mash of plot info makes the feature film feel simultaneously rushed and overlong.

We also could have used more Ray Winstone. The star of Sexy Beast uses his gruff Cockney accent and imposing gut for maximum imposing presence as a shadowy government agent who may or may not want to help Craven. Winstone is charming and compelling, even though a) we can’t quite understand a single word he’s saying since he mumbles all his lines, and b) once things are concluded in the script, we realize his character serves absolutely no purpose whatsoever.

It’s all a shame since the last 10 minutes of Edge of Darkness finally does become brutally exciting as Craven is allowed the opportunity to unleash all his pent-up fury. There’s even a touch of Braveheart’s satisfyingly bittersweet conclusion and it reminds us what we enjoy about Mel Gibson. He still has the power to electrify us with his dead-eyed, simmering stare, as well as touch us with his cinematic fetish for martyrdom.

Too bad one can’t say the same for the rest of the movie.

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