Mystic River (2003)
We bury our sins, we wash them clean.
The lives of three men who were childhood friends are shattered when one of them suffers a family tragedy.
Rent on Prime Video $3.99 (opens in a new tab) Buy on Apple TV $7.99 (opens in a new tab)
| Type | Movie |
|---|---|
| Released | 8 October 2003 |
| Genre | Thriller, Drama, Mystery, Crime |
| Director | Clint Eastwood |
| Starring | Sean Penn, Tim Robbins and Kevin Bacon |
| Runtime | 138 min |
| Rated | R |
| Scores | Rotten Tomatoes (average) 7.8/10 · Rotten Tomatoes 89% · Metacritic 84/100 · TMDB users 7.7/10 |
| Budget | $25 million |
| Box office | $157 million worldwide |
Where to watch Mystic River
Mystic River is streaming on Tubi in the US.
We check availability daily. Page last updated 28 October 2026. Prices are standard monthly plans and change often, so check with the service before you sign up.
Rent or buy
You can rent Mystic River on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube, Fandango at Home and Spectrum On Demand. It is also for sale on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube and Fandango at Home.
Where to watch Mystic River in 89 other countries
| Country | Streaming on (price a month) |
|---|---|
| Albania | Netflix about |
| Andorra | Netflix |
| Angola | Netflix about |
| Antigua & Barbuda | Max |
| Argentina | Max $9590 ARS |
| Australia | Prime Video $12.99 AUD, ARD/ZDF |
| Bahamas | Max |
| Barbados | Max |
| Belgium | Netflix €10.99 |
| Belize | Max |
| Bolivia | Max |
| Bosnia & Herzegovina | Netflix about |
| Brazil | Max R$34.90 |
| Bulgaria | Netflix €5.99 |
| Cameroon | Netflix about |
| Cape Verde | Netflix about |
| Chile | Max $9590 CLP |
| Colombia | Max $24900 COP |
| Costa Rica | Max |
| Croatia | Netflix €5.99 |
| Cyprus | Netflix €8.99 |
| Czechia | Netflix 259 Kč |
| Côte d’Ivoire | Netflix about |
| Denmark | Netflix 109 kr DKK |
| Dominican Republic | Max |
| Ecuador | Max $8.29 |
| El Salvador | Max |
| Equatorial Guinea | Netflix about |
| Fiji | Netflix about |
| Finland | Netflix €10.99 |
| Ghana | Netflix about |
| Gibraltar | Prime Video |
| Guatemala | Max |
| Guernsey | Netflix, Prime Video |
| Guyana | Max |
| Honduras | Max |
| Hong Kong | Netflix HK$78 |
| Hungary | Netflix 3190 Ft |
| Indonesia | Netflix Rp65000 |
| Ireland | Netflix €11.99, Prime Video €6.99, Max |
| Italy | Skygo, Now TV |
| Jamaica | Max |
| Japan | Hulu, U-NEXT ¥2189 JPY |
| Kenya | Netflix KSh300 |
| Madagascar | Netflix about |
| Malaysia | Netflix RM33.90 |
| Mali | Netflix about |
| Mauritius | Netflix about |
| Mexico | Max $149 MXN |
| Moldova | Netflix about |
| Montenegro | Netflix |
| Mozambique | Netflix about |
| New Zealand | Prime Video $8.99 NZD |
| Nicaragua | Max |
| Niger | Netflix about |
| Nigeria | Netflix ₦4000 |
| North Macedonia | Netflix about |
| Norway | Netflix 119 kr NOK |
| Pakistan | Netflix Rs450 |
| Panama | Max $8.29 |
| Paraguay | Max |
| Peru | Max S/35.90 |
| Philippines | Netflix ₱279 |
| Poland | Netflix 37.00 zł |
| Portugal | Netflix €8.99, Max €9.99 |
| Romania | Netflix about 32.08 lei |
| Senegal | Netflix about |
| Serbia | Netflix about 705 din |
| Seychelles | Netflix about |
| Singapore | Netflix $15.98 SGD |
| Slovakia | Netflix €9.49 |
| Slovenia | Netflix €5.99 |
| South Africa | Netflix R99 ZAR |
| South Korea | Netflix ₩13500, Watcha |
| Spain | Netflix €14.99 |
| St. Lucia | Max |
| Sweden | Netflix 129 kr SEK |
| Taiwan | Netflix NT$290 |
| Tanzania | Netflix about |
| Thailand | Netflix ฿169 |
| Trinidad & Tobago | Max |
| Turks & Caicos Islands | Max |
| Türkiye | Netflix ₺259.99 |
| Uganda | Netflix about |
| United Kingdom | Netflix £13.99 GBP, Prime Video £8.99 GBP, Max £9.99 GBP |
| Uruguay | Max $U399 |
| Venezuela | Max |
| Zambia | Netflix about |
| Zimbabwe | Netflix |
Subscription, free and ad-supported services we track; prices where Binge Boss has a price list for the country. "About" marks a price the service bills in another currency, converted at the day's rate. All countries as data.
What kind of watch this is
Clint Eastwood directs a 138-minute crime drama where the lives of three childhood friends are shattered when one of them suffers a family tragedy. Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, and Kevin Bacon play men whose past collides with their present in a slow, suffocating build. The film leans heavily on atmospheric tension rather than quick twists, letting the weight of old choices crush the characters underfoot. It is a long, quiet watch that trusts you to sit with the discomfort. If you like your thrillers to feel like a bad memory that will not fade, this is the one.
What the critics said
Critics treated this film with a seriousness that matched its tone. Rotten Tomatoes reports an 89% approval rating as of August 2024, while Metacritic assigns it a 84 out of 100, a score it files under universal acclaim. The consensus leans on the acting to carry the weight of the plot. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone called it "haunting" and "hypnotic." David Edelstein of The New York Times saw it as a look at Eastwood becoming "cinema's sorrowful conscience." Not everyone was charmed. A.O. Scott found the story grew from an abduction like "a mass of dark weeds." It is a heavy watch, but the darkness feels earned, not performed.
How it did with audiences
Mystic River cost $25 million to make. It collected $90 million in the United States and $157 million worldwide. That is a solid return on investment, even if the film itself refuses to be simple. Audiences gave it a 7.7 TMDB user score.
Awards
Mystic River took 6 awards from 10 nominations. Sean Penn won the Academy Award for Best Actor, and Tim Robbins took Best Supporting Actor the same year. The National Board of Review named it their Best Film, and the International Cinephile Society recognized the ensemble. It also picked up a César for Best Foreign Film. A solid haul for a film that mostly just sits in a dark room.
What came next for the cast
Sean Penn moved from The Game and Carlito's Way to The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, One Battle After Another, and Gangster Squad. Tim Robbins went from The Shawshank Redemption and Top Gun to War of the Worlds, Green Lantern, and Zathura: A Space Adventure. Kevin Bacon jumped from Apollo 13 and A Few Good Men to X-Men: First Class, Crazy, Stupid, Love., and R.I.P.D. Laurence Fishburne traded The Matrix and Apocalypse Now for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Man of Steel, and John Wick: Chapter 2. The credits do not say Mystic River caused that pivot. They just mark where the genre shift happened.
If you liked this
TMDB's recommendations for people who watched Mystic River.
Read more: Primal Fear
Sources
- Mystic River on TMDB — synopsis, cast, ratings and recommendations
- Wikidata Q221586 — review scores, box office and awards (CC0)
- “Mystic River (film)” on Wikipedia, by its contributors (history) — reception, audience figures and legacy, summarised and adapted here under CC BY-SA 4.0
- Where to watch and prices: Binge Boss, from TMDB watch-provider data (powered by JustWatch) and our own provider list
Watch it without paying for the whole year
Binge Boss tracks the movie you are on and tells you which services you need this month, and which you can cancel.
Add Mystic River to your list