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This is truly on of the most haunting and touching films that I have seen in quite a while. I was previously unaware of the real life story from which this film is based. Schumacher’s film chronicles 2 years in the life of Dublin reporter Veronica Guerin. Blanchett gives a powerful performance to portray Guerin as a loving wife, mother and friend as well as a determined and fearless journalist. Intrigued and appalled by the Irish government’s dealings with the rising drug problems within Dublin, Guerin begins a journalistic crusade to uncover the leaders of the drug ring. Guerin’s investigations cause her to become a victim of multiple acts of violence and yet as tragedy overwhelms the Guerin family, Veronica has the last say with Irish laws regarding drugs and unaccounted for income to change and many of the drug leaders find punishment for their crimes.***

I highly recommend this film, but I would like to caution viewers that it is difficult to watch at times. There are scenes of severe violence and abusive language. I cannot praise Blanchett’s performance enough. She is truly captivating and most sincerely should have been considers for an Academy Award nomination at this years Oscars. The rest of the cast is superb. For Colin Farrell fans, he makes a very brief appearance in a secondary role as the “tattooed boy.” The film’s ending is extremely well done; however, I advise you that a box of tissues might be in order.***

This DVD is loaded with extras. There are two commentaries, a making of featurette, a deleted scene, real archive footage of Veronica Guerin, an audio conversation with producer Jerry Bruckheimer, and an audio commentary of photos taken on the set by Jerry Bruckheimer. The extras are insightful and extremely interesting to any viewer who would like to learn more about the real life Guerin and her determination to make Dublin a safer place to live. The viewer is able to see how the cast and crew became inspired by this woman and wanted to share her story.***

One particular feature that is very interesting is the historical archive footage of Guerin herself. What is interesting is that this footage is also the same scene that was deleted from the film. Guerin gives her award acceptance speech, calling for all journalists to stand their ground and not let others intimidate them from learning the truth and doing their jobs. Blanchett truly captures the essence of Guerin’s speech. I think that this scene would have been a nice addition to the film, but it is fortunate that we have the footage even though it didn’t make it into the final cut. In this footage, it is possible for the viewer to see just how complete the transformation that Blanchett had to undergo to become Guerin. The appearance between Guerin and Blanchett is uncanny; however, Blanchett may be a tad too young for this part. Despite this, Blanchett’s talent as an actress is confirmed by her accurate portrayal of Guerin’s mannerisms and devotion to her work.***

The conversation with Jerry Bruckheimer consists of still from the film and his commentary over that particular scene or moment of production. Bruckheimer’s photo journal is also an interesting feature. He comments on various photos he has taken during production, anything from photos of cast and crew to a photo a an adorable border collie that was near the set. These two features and interesting because of the different perspective that Bruckheimer has to offer being not only a producer but also a bystander watching the development of this film.***