FRACTURE
2007
R
You can watch the trailer here
R
You can watch the trailer here
In football, you always hear announcers, players and coaches say how important it is to play all four quarters. The same goes for basketball just as it goes for the nine innings in baseball. If you don't compete at a high level for the game's entirety, you run the risk of losing the game in the end. I would argue that the same principle holds true for film: you can have two great acts, but if your third act doesn't deliver, the entire movie will crumble before the audience's eyes. Sadly, Fracture made this mistake and suffered the consequences.
The film, which was directed by Gregory Hoblit, opens on Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins) spying on his wife and her secret lover. Arriving home earlier than normal, he essentially ambushes his wife and shoots her. The police come, and Ted is arrested, apparently pleading guilty to attempted murder as his wife did not die. Enter D.A. Prosecutor William Beachum (Ryan Gosling), known for his high rate of success in trials. He has one foot in the door of a renowned law firm but decides to stay on for one last case when Crawford shows interest in matching wits with him. As the trial plays out, it appears that Crawford may actually have the leg up on Beachum, and the film turns into a struggle for Beachum to find the necessary evidence in order to put Crawford away.
Based on the trailer and the brief synopsis I just provided, it may seem as though we've got all the ingredients necessary for success (and the film did do relatively well with critics). Add in the fact that we've got three Oscar nominees on board with Hopkins, Gosling and David Strathairn, and Fracture should have knocked it out of the park. However, the plot structure did have a few issues that proved a little annoying. As I said earlier, the film's set-up is fantastic: seeing Hopkins and Gosling spar back and forth is a delight, and the screenplay was actually relatively intelligent. Sadly, the film's finale leaves a lot to be desired. After spending almost two hours being dazzled by Crawford's seeming intelligence, a logistical technicality does him in. For how well he had played this entire game the whole way through, it just seemed a little too implausible that he would have completely overlooked this one little detail.
I can't really take anything away from the acting in the film. Everyone does their part, especially our two leads whose presence constantly demand the screen. Strathairn and Rosamund Pike also have a few very good scenes. There's really no issues with the acting. It's not going to blow you away, but it's definitely good enough to keep your attention.
If you're going to watch Fracture, watch it for the performances rather than the actual screenplay. Perhaps you can get into a little more than I could, but the ending just found a way to spoil it for me. Maybe you won't have the same reaction.
The film, which was directed by Gregory Hoblit, opens on Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins) spying on his wife and her secret lover. Arriving home earlier than normal, he essentially ambushes his wife and shoots her. The police come, and Ted is arrested, apparently pleading guilty to attempted murder as his wife did not die. Enter D.A. Prosecutor William Beachum (Ryan Gosling), known for his high rate of success in trials. He has one foot in the door of a renowned law firm but decides to stay on for one last case when Crawford shows interest in matching wits with him. As the trial plays out, it appears that Crawford may actually have the leg up on Beachum, and the film turns into a struggle for Beachum to find the necessary evidence in order to put Crawford away.
Based on the trailer and the brief synopsis I just provided, it may seem as though we've got all the ingredients necessary for success (and the film did do relatively well with critics). Add in the fact that we've got three Oscar nominees on board with Hopkins, Gosling and David Strathairn, and Fracture should have knocked it out of the park. However, the plot structure did have a few issues that proved a little annoying. As I said earlier, the film's set-up is fantastic: seeing Hopkins and Gosling spar back and forth is a delight, and the screenplay was actually relatively intelligent. Sadly, the film's finale leaves a lot to be desired. After spending almost two hours being dazzled by Crawford's seeming intelligence, a logistical technicality does him in. For how well he had played this entire game the whole way through, it just seemed a little too implausible that he would have completely overlooked this one little detail.
I can't really take anything away from the acting in the film. Everyone does their part, especially our two leads whose presence constantly demand the screen. Strathairn and Rosamund Pike also have a few very good scenes. There's really no issues with the acting. It's not going to blow you away, but it's definitely good enough to keep your attention.
If you're going to watch Fracture, watch it for the performances rather than the actual screenplay. Perhaps you can get into a little more than I could, but the ending just found a way to spoil it for me. Maybe you won't have the same reaction.
Movie Review Summary:
Grade: C+
Thumb... Sideways
Grade: C+
Thumb... Sideways
No comments:
Post a Comment