Directed by Joe Roth.
This is a difficult film to categorize, and I can see how some who view the trailers or make an assumption from the box cover might think its something that its not. It is not a thriller, nor is it, really, an action flick, despite having the "King of Cool", Samuel L. Jackson. Its a drama set in a gritty urban setting that touches on some very sensitive issues, including race and the victimization of children, but I could not say that those issues are the only focus of the film.
I can see how this movie might not work for some people, despite the solid cast. But, without a doubt, it worked for me and I would guess it will for most people, although I see this as the type of movie that most film watchers will either really like, or really dislike.
The story starts in a tough housing project in a fictional
One night while on duty, Council receives a dispatch from the precinct that informs him that a woman has been carjacked near the project. Initially curious that no one around has seen or heard anything, Council proceeds to the hospital to meet and interview the victim, a woman named Brenda (Julianne Moore Boogie Nights).
Brenda is hurt with cuts to her hands, clearly distraught, and from the first minutes onscreen we can see her mental stability starting to erode. It is minutes into the interview before Brenda tells Council-inexplicably, she had not mentioned it earlier- that her 4 years old son was in the backseat of the car and that the carjacker was a black man of average description.
This revelation immediately speeds up the pace of the film in concert with the frantic pace of the story. It turns out that Brenda is a recovering addict who is a volunteer at the nursery school in the project and is well known and liked. Furthermore, she has a brother (Ron Eldard) who is a detective from a neighboring town called Gannon.
What follows is the almost surreal action of police literally looking down the project in hopes of finding the carjacker. The mood of the residents of the project, skeptical at first, gradually evolve into anger and then the threat of violence.
Council finds himself somewhat caught in the middle as a cop who is empathetic to both the victim of the crime, as well as the innocent people in the project who are being treated like criminals because of where they live. This is made more difficult for him by the fact that, despite his sympathy for Brenda, he is growing increasingly skeptical of her story.
Aiding Council in his dilemma is his solid partner (William Forsythe) and the leader (Edie Falco Copland) of a civilian group dedicated to finding missing/abducted children. As the story progresses, we see Brenda being consumed more and more with her feelings of grief, and her descent into instability.
I refuse to intentionally spoil any film I blog about (unless I just feel like it), but I will say that the conclusion of the story will not surprise most people and, unlike some who might say that makes the movie a failure, I think it is a mistake to assume or expect that any decent movie, somehow, has to shock you or totally surprise to have been worth your while.
Also, some might find the premise a little over the top, but any that have been in law enforcement or remember situations such as what occurred in Philadelphia with the Move group in the early '80's or in many housing projects in Boston after the false implication by Charles Stuart in 1989 can certainly imagine something of this nature happening, with the right (or wrong) factual, emotional, and political factors.
I think this is a very good film because the story, in so many ways, is timeless and realistic on many levels. There are some holes in the script which I won't mention here because I would be giving away the plot, but they are not fatal. What makes this movie so good, as it always does in movies that are good, are the performances of the actors.
Samuel L. Jackson is almost legendary for his screen presence and his "tough cool", and you see some of that here, but those who know him primarily from his bigger movie roles such as Pulp Fiction, Die Hard III, Jackie Brown, Basic, or Shaft will be surprised to see a lot more vulnerability in Sam in this film than in those. He doesn't physically intimidate in the film, in fact, he is asthmatic as well as guilt ridden over his parenting of his son.
But, he doesn't take the prize for film standout here. That award is split between Edie Falco and Julianne Moore. Falco might just be the best actress working today, particularly if she is cast correctly. Here, we see a dark haired Falco who is the strength of the film. Her monologue to a grieving
Another Oscar worthy performance is turned in by
You also see some good performances by Eldard (Sleepers), Forsythe (Out For Justice), and Ellis, who don't have enough screen time to stand out as much as they might have otherwise. Forsythe is one of the better character actors out there. This is a good role for Ellis, who has shown her talent before, but in more glamorous roles that take advantage of her beauty. In this film, that substantial beauty is not displayed, and we see once and for all that she is a very talented actress. I've always like Ron Eldard, though he hasn't been in as much as I would think his talent deserves. He brings the anger and outrage to the movie from the law enforcement side. I do think his character could have been used better in the film.
Overall, a good movie about important things. Even if you find the story uneven, anticlimatic, or unrealistic, you will still enjoy the product of several very, very good actors. And, if the acting is good, the movie is good almost by default, isn't it?
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