But that may also be the point of their glossy, epic execution (no pun intended)-to engage in the escapist pleasure of explosions and violence as a way of distracting the audience from the fact that Clyde has morphed from a mourning husband searching for justice into a homicidal madman who will stop at nothing to make his point. In his dismantling of the legal process (at least surrounding his own case), he turns Nick and his team into gophers for his personal appetites, even as he coordinates an elaborate string of murders that are far too entertaining to hold much emotional meaning. Ironically, there’s a certain kind of visceral enjoyment to be gleaned from Clyde’s indefatigable inventiveness, his irreverence, and his overall bloodlust. No matter how outraged you might be about the rape and murder of Clyde’s family, it seems excessive, if not plain bonkers, for him to subsequently take out the defense attorney, a judge, and some of Nick’s colleagues.
What is interesting about this film, as opposed to its predecessor, is the fact that Clyde’s quest for revenge starts off somewhat understandably-initially hunting the criminals who ruined his life-but then moves on to less specific or relevant targets. More importantly, both movies create vaguely sympathetic figures out of characters whose behavior would otherwise be considered criminal. Both feature experts in their specialized fields turning the tables on the folks they collaborated with or worked for.
Before long, Nick finds himself in a deadly game of cat and mouse with Clyde that will not only shatter his spot at the top of Philadelphia’s legal food chain, but potentially literally destroy the lives of everyone around him.Ī little over ten years ago, director Gray made his name as a mainstream moviemaker with The Negotiator, and if you’ve seen it, then you’ve seen most of Law Abiding Citizen. Nick takes the case and expects a quick conviction, but before Clyde will admit to the murders, he confesses that he has an ulterior motive for allowing himself to be captured by the authorities: He wants to take down the entire legal system piece by piece, starting with the folks responsible for helping his family’s murderers go free. Ten years later, both of the defendants die under mysterious and grisly circumstances, and authorities apprehend Clyde as a murder suspect. But then again, the whole film is pretty much an affront to anything resembling appropriate behavior, much less moral rectitude or even just common sense, that Gray’s latest should hardly be called out for offending any particular group-especially when so much of it manages to be surprisingly fun.įoxx plays Nick Rice, an attorney for the Philadelphia D.A.’s office who cuts a deal with a couple of lowlifes in order to preserve his 95 percent prosecution record-much to the chagrin of his client, Clyde Shelton (Gerard Butler), who wants the murderers of his wife and daughter brought to justice. Jamie Foxx plays the legal eagle in question, and his character commits enough offenses to ensure that his name and “justice” should probably never be mentioned in the same sentence. legal system, it’s suffice it to say that Gray’s film doesn’t paint a particularly flattering portrait of lawyers.
Gary Gray’s new film Law Abiding Citizen, about an attorney who squares off against a criminal who’s disillusioned with the U.S. While it would be a serious mistake for any moviegoer to take too seriously F.
0 kommentar(er)
