Having finished watching The Son of No One, I can't say that I am truly disappointed in what I saw, but I felt the film could have been better. Not having too high expectations because knowing the film did not make a US theater release (made film Festivals- Sundance) but I felt that the talented cast was wasted. The cast is what drew me into watching the film. Also starring in the film is Al Pacino, Ray Liotta, Tracy Morgan, and Katie Holmes.The Son of No one offers many flashbacks showing Channing Tatum's character Johnathan White as a young child in 1986 (roughly about 14 years old), and we quickly see what happens with the character, as he first kills one stranger as self defense. The other killing he does later in the film also involves self defense in another manner. Fast forward 16 years later and we now see Johnathan White grown and working as a cop, yet still slightly traumatized by this incident. I did not find the excessive use of flashback sequences to be bad but felt the actors acting could have been better (specifically by his friend Vinnie, along with the other girl Vicky).The ending also bugged me as if they did not know how to end the film or they were running low on budget. From the point on where he see Johnathan confess to his wife (Katie Holmes) about the incident, to then his partner cop taking him down to the force for an interrogation with Captain Marion Mathers (Ray Liotta), and detective Charles Stanford (Al Pacino- who's first encounter with present day Johnathan), everyone spills out. I assumed we were waiting for Johnathan to tell the news which was the build up for but it was Mathers who breaks it. We then hear that Mathers and Stanford simply allow the incident to slip and they tell Johnathan to forgot about it ever happening. They let him off easy because they do not want the news to come out that a cop was in on a murder which happened years ago. Once they allow Johnathan to exit, he then proceeds to leave, get in his vehicle, drive home, but as he is doing so, he gets thoughts in his head and suddenly turns back to where Mathers and Stanford were questioning him. Once he arrives back on scene, he then sees that they both have his friend Vinnie on the roof top hostage and were about to shoot. A few moments of chatter occurs discussing the situation. What eventually proceeds to happen is that Vinnie shoots and kills Mathers, then Stanford shoots and knocks Vinnie down from the roof top to the ground killing him. Johnathan being stunned by his friend being dead, we see the anger in Tatum's face as he is exiting away from Stanford. Fast forward a few scenes later and we see a brief scene of Vicky writing and confessing that she was the one who was sending letters towards Johnathan (meaning Vinnie kept his word and was innocent- Vicky was the one who basically got three people killed because of her misdoings). Afterwards, the letter gets sent, Johnathan picks it up, reads it then the film ends.The storyline makes too much of a big deal surrounding an incident that happened when he was younger and in a form self defense. It is interesting watching it all unfold, though it could have been more suspenseful. The Son of No one was more of a cop drama than a cop thriller. With better story telling and a better script, this film could have been something special. I did find the acting from the cast all really well which is what makes the film more enjoyable.

I thought this movie was OK. I'm surprised by all the negative reviews. My main complaint would be that it moved along a little to slow, but the story made sense and it was interesting. Also, I didn't think Jonathan would have done what he did at the end because he's jeopardizing his family.But the story about Jonathan's guilt and how he lived with it and eventually became a cop was pretty good. Plus you had the surprise of why he ended up at the prescient that was 2 hours from his home. Channing Tatum was decent in this, better acting than a lot of his movies.FINAL VERDICT: OK, if you want a drama.

I won't give away spoilers. Let me just say this: The acting is good, the actors are good. So, why 2 out of 10? Well, the storyline, and plot, and the layout of the movie ruin the film. Tracy Morgan does a good job at his role. So do the main actors.Okay, one problem is the plot is silly and not realistic. When you watch the movie and see what happens because of the plot, you will just say to yourself "who in real life would care?".The next problem, things are not always explained and the movie is boring and slow, but when things happen and you have to think about why they are happening, that is not enjoyable. For example, at one point, something unexpected happens while a main character is in a jeep making a phone call. Nothing is explained and it makes no sense, why did it need to happen? Last problem, moving from flashback to present time every five minutes! Literally, every five minutes they reveal the past a little bit and then go to present time. Nothing fits 100% until you get towards the very end of the movie. At one point, there is a flashback of a main character in a hospital, why is he there? I don't know. Who put him there? Not sure. What is going on during that time? I don't know. I have no idea, and further scenes don't seem to shed light on the previous situation.This movie sucks, period.

I don't normally write reviews but I felt compelled to write this one because of all the criticism this movie has received. Believe none of it. The Son of No One is an intriguing, superbly acted, crime/drama/thriller/mystery. It is rather slow paced, and there aren't a lot of shootouts etc but that doesn't make it any the less compelling. I was hooked from start to finish. The movie is told both from a current perspective and from a series of flashbacks. Two murders that occur in the flashbacks remain unsolved and that has repercussions for the present part of the movie. Someone is talking and someone wants the talk to stop. Channing Tatum's character is a cop caught in the middle of all this. Gradually the story unfolds and the tension rises. Channing Tatum is especially good in his role, but Katie Holmes also shows some acting chops.