Running time: 115 minutes
Starring: Ashley Judd, Morgan Freeman, James Caviezel, Adam Scott, Amanda Peet, Bruce Davison
Rating 4 out of 10
Ever since they were paired in 1997's Kiss The Girls, the charismatic duo of Judd and Freeman have been looking for the right project to reunite. Unfortunately they haven't been able to find it so they decided to do High Crimes instead. This utterly formulaic thriller provides few glimpses of the chemistry that made their first collaboration more endearing than the material deserved. Here they are unable to perform the same trick as High Crimes burdens itself with a vague story involving a military cover-up that conspires to keep their scenes together to a minimum.
The film's slick appearance and sense of familiarity provide it with a broad audience, the majority of whom will find it entertaining, if insubstantial. There are plenty of twists to keep you guessing, but little to engage you enough to care. It's a consequence of making a film centred on the fate of a man, Ronald Chapman (James Caviezel), who is neither trustworthy nor endearing. The film also requires some fairly large leaps of faith to sustain any credulity. How is it that Chapman's supposedly brilliant attorney wife Claire (Ashley Judd) had no idea of his past or true identity? Those who chose not to probe too deeply will probably feel more satisfied.
Claire and her husband are happy newlyweds, planning their first child when their idyllic life is shattered one day while out Christmas shopping. Ron is dramatically arrested in the street by the military police. Turns out he wasn't who she thought he was. Formerly a sergeant in the marines, he'd gone AWOL after being accused of massacring nine civilians in El Salvador. Vehemently protesting his innocence, he maintains another in his troop, Major Hernandez (Juan Carlos Hernandez), was responsible. The devastated Claire finds herself with the dilemma of whether or not to believe her husband, despite his betrayal. She chooses to defend him, but being unfamiliar with the workings of the military court, she engages the services of the wily Charlie Grimes (Morgan Freeman) who was a good lawyer "in another life," before booze took its toll.
The defence team is augmented by the military appointed Lt Embry (Adam Scott), who becomes romantically involved with Claire's carefree sister Jackie (Amanda Peet). Claire risks her professional career as she battles very publicly to prove her husband's innocence, while privately their relationship comes under increasing strain as she discovers more about who he really is and begins to doubt if indeed he's telling the truth.
It's easy to understand Claire's uncertainty. It's the same uncertainty director Carl Franklin has created for the viewer by the use of deliberately misleading footage of the massacre and enough red herrings to sink a trawler. The use of such tactics is excusable in a well-crafted mystery, but not when the plot takes inexplicable turns designed more to shade doubt and conveniently tie up loose ends than provide a satisfying conclusion.
The film's slick appearance and sense of familiarity provide it with a broad audience, the majority of whom will find it entertaining, if insubstantial. There are plenty of twists to keep you guessing, but little to engage you enough to care. It's a consequence of making a film centred on the fate of a man, Ronald Chapman (James Caviezel), who is neither trustworthy nor endearing. The film also requires some fairly large leaps of faith to sustain any credulity. How is it that Chapman's supposedly brilliant attorney wife Claire (Ashley Judd) had no idea of his past or true identity? Those who chose not to probe too deeply will probably feel more satisfied.
Claire and her husband are happy newlyweds, planning their first child when their idyllic life is shattered one day while out Christmas shopping. Ron is dramatically arrested in the street by the military police. Turns out he wasn't who she thought he was. Formerly a sergeant in the marines, he'd gone AWOL after being accused of massacring nine civilians in El Salvador. Vehemently protesting his innocence, he maintains another in his troop, Major Hernandez (Juan Carlos Hernandez), was responsible. The devastated Claire finds herself with the dilemma of whether or not to believe her husband, despite his betrayal. She chooses to defend him, but being unfamiliar with the workings of the military court, she engages the services of the wily Charlie Grimes (Morgan Freeman) who was a good lawyer "in another life," before booze took its toll.
The defence team is augmented by the military appointed Lt Embry (Adam Scott), who becomes romantically involved with Claire's carefree sister Jackie (Amanda Peet). Claire risks her professional career as she battles very publicly to prove her husband's innocence, while privately their relationship comes under increasing strain as she discovers more about who he really is and begins to doubt if indeed he's telling the truth.
It's easy to understand Claire's uncertainty. It's the same uncertainty director Carl Franklin has created for the viewer by the use of deliberately misleading footage of the massacre and enough red herrings to sink a trawler. The use of such tactics is excusable in a well-crafted mystery, but not when the plot takes inexplicable turns designed more to shade doubt and conveniently tie up loose ends than provide a satisfying conclusion.
