Fracture (2009)

First of all, the movie starts off with a murder and you know who the murderer is. So it isn't a suspense story as much as a psychological thriller, the type that pits two very strong personalities against one another (played by Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling).

Each is a control freak and each is ambitious. The whole thrill of this movie is watching the characters, seeing how they develop and change and wondering how this will all play out.

Looking at the reviews that others have written for this movie, it is clear that people tended to love or hate this movie -and I think I understand why. For one thing, you KNOW what happened -and why -almost from the start. But I happen to like character-driven movies and this one is definitely in that vein. Yes, Hopkins does seem to recreate his Hannibel Lechter personalty (or hints of it) but that worked out fine in this instance.

Fracture is a great psychological drama that stars Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling. Fracture is a film with qualities reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock era that really left me guessing until the very end. Gosling's performance as a young smitten lawyer named Willie Beachum is something to applaud. I was not impressed when he was cast in a crime thriller called "Murder by Numbers" with Sandra Bullock a few years ago, but those thoughts are now erased from my memory. Beachum takes on the case of a successful engineer named Ted Crawford, who is accused of attempted murder. As the clues become less and less presentable, Beachum suddenly realizes that Crawford is playing some sort of game, and it is a game of chance and elaborate mind games that Beachum just might win.

Fracture did not douse me with puzzles, in fact it really held back in that area and yet the continual drama that played out between the two main characters was more than enough to keep me not just guessing, but simply interested in the film's story as a whole.

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If you like courtroom dramas, appreciate excellent acting and an expertly-filmed movie this is for you. Only once, I think, have I ever proclaimed something "best movie of the year" and all that, because it's all too subjective and also a cliché but that's how I feel about this movie unless something better comes along the last few months of 2007.

This is just a fabulous movie with Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling playing characters who engage in a battle of wits. Hopkins plays a husband who discovers his wife having an affair, shoots her, confesses the same night and then has things cleverly arranged where it's almost impossible to convict him. Gosling plays a young, hotshot prosecuting attorney on his way to bigger and better things with a change of scenery to corporate law but gets stuck with this open-and-shut case right before he switches firms. The trouble is, it's a lot more than he figured and he isn't used to losing. Hopkins knows this, of course, and plays on his vanity.

Gosling evolves from a me-only lawyer to someone who really wants justice, even if it costs him. Both characters are cocky and smart and the twists and turns just add to the fun.

I enjoyed watching all the actors performances and was very impressed. The camera-work by Director Of Photography Kramer Morgenthau should also be recognized, along with director Gregory Hoblit, who seems to direct very entertaining films ("Frequency," "Fallen," etc.)

I could have watched this story unfold for another two hours and would have been happy to do so, am I'm not one to sit still for long periods these days. That's how good this was....just Grade A film-making and storytelling.

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Let there be no doubt, Anthony Hopkins plays a very good "bad guy". Obviously, his best role was in "Silence of the Lambs" where he was evil personified. However, in "Fracture", he is also excellent as the alleged killer of his philandering wife.

In brief, "Fracture" is a court room drama. Hopkins plays the part of Ted Crawford who has chosen to murder his wife in cold blood. The crime is to be prosecuted by Ryan Gosling playing the role of Willy Beachum. To Beachum, the case is a "slam dunk". Apparently, there is a signed confession, a murder weapon and a motive. However, as we soon learn, the case is far more complicated than it appears to be a first glance. Ted Crawford is a clever man who has left no tracks. Indeed, he is acquitted. But hubris then takes hold. If only he had chosen not to continue to press the envelope.

On small criticism I have of the movie is that the gun was never traced by its serial number. When you see the movie, this point will make sense. It's a clear weakness in the plot. If not, the police department involved was monumentally incompetent.

In spite of my criticism, the movie is worth seeing. Not great, but certainly good.

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"Fracture", the new film from director Gregory Hoblit ("Primal Fear", TV's "L.A. Law", "NYPD Blue"), is a pretty routine legal thriller with four attributes that help it stand out from the rest of the pack.

Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins), an aerospace tycoon, sits at his desk working on a new Rube Goldberg contraption when he suddenly realizes he should leave the office. He shows up at a local hotel and finds his wife, Jennifer (Embeth Davidtz) having an affair with Rob (Billy Burke, "Ladder 49", TV's "24"), a detective with the Los Angeles police force. When Jennifer returns home, Ted confronts her and shoots her. Later, Rob is the detective called to the scene. When he realizes his girlfriend has been killed, he attacks Ted. At trial, Willy Beachum (Ryan Gosling, "Half Nelson), a deputy DA with one foot out the door for a private practice job, is reluctant to take the case until he learns there is a signed confession. He convinces the district attorney (David Strathairn) that he can close the case in the two weeks he has left, keeping his conviction rate and new job intact. Willie, a man with a lot of debt, anxious to get going on his new high salary position, takes the case and soon meets his new boss, Nikki Gardner (Rosamunde Pike, "Pride and Prejudice", "Die Another Day"), who seems to be attracted to her new Junior Associate. But Willie is cocky and assumes this is a slam-dunk until he starts to learn Ted's strategies to win the trial.

"Fracture" is a pretty routine legal thriller centered on a `brilliant mind' who will manipulate everyone around him in an effort to go free. The one person standing in his way? A younger `brilliant mind'.

There are four factors that set "Fracture" apart from the rest of the pack. The first, and least significant of the four, are Hoblit's efforts to shoot this film in a very lush style, making it an almost beautiful film to watch. Hoblit worked on many of Steven Bocho's television series and the style is similar to "L.A. Law" or "Murder One". All of the surfaces gleam with polish, shadows are heavy and dark, and figures are frequently seen from behind screens or in shadow. Sunlight also seems to play a major influence on all of the cinematography. Often, characters are walking through hallways and we see the glow of early afternoon light trying to break through the dusty passageways or reflecting off marble surfaces. This technique helps to give the film a rich look, even beyond the general lifestyle of Hopkin's character, who is rich and lives in a nice, modern house. This technique helps to give Gosling's office at the District Attorney's office a rich look, even though the office is cramped, unglamorous and very different from Ted's lifestyle.

The other three factors are the talent of three actors involved in the film. First and foremost is Anthony Hopkins. Hopkins has played this type of role before, the brilliant mastermind, but he does it so well. There are and will be inevitable comparisons between this role and Hannibal Lecter (both are brilliant, both are deadly, both play mind games with a young `protégé') and Ted Crawford is Hannibal light. But it is always interesting to watch a master like Hopkins, even when he is lobbed a softball like this role. Crawford, an aeronautical engineer, likes to create elaborate rube Goldberg contraptions, with long metal chutes, allowing Crawford to place a metal ball at the top and watch it move through a series of passages, all connected, much like a large version of the game "Mousetrap". When he realizes his wife is cheating on him, he decides to shoot her and comes up with a way to get through all of the legal challenges and hurdles. Presumably, studying these contraptions helps him work through all of the possible variations.

As the story progresses, Hopkins manages to add some nice touches to the role, making him seem even more devious and menacing. During a character's testimony, Crawford, who has chosen to represent himself, doodles on a yellow legal pad, periodically ripping the pages from the pad. Each time he tears off a sheet, the sound reverberates through the quiet courtroom, causing Beachum to turn his attention to the defendant.

Ryan Gosling does a great job as Willie Beachum, the Assistant District Attorney who gladly accepts a high paying job at one of the most respected law firms in Los Angeles. Beachum is cocky and trying to move beyond his roots; he grew up poor in Oklahoma and now has a load of debt from law school. He clearly always saw the District Attorney's office as a stepping-stone and is now glad to be leaving it. When he meets with his boss (played by David Strathairn), a comment is made about Willie's high conviction rate and the lengths he would go to get it. Willie is a complicated guy and not beyond inflating the truth or maneuvering things to benefit his goals.

When he meets his new boss, Nikki Gardner (Rosamunde Pike), he is instantly attracted to her and they flirt. This is yet another example of his cockiness, because he knows he is good looking and doesn't care if he flirts with his new boss. The fact that this leads to the film's biggest plot hole is beyond the point. because he is so brazen about it, this adds significantly to his character.

He strides into the courtroom and decides to prosecute Ted's case, despite his impending new job, because he considers it a slam-dunk. Ted signed a confession, there was no one else in the house, and how could he lose? Then, Ted begins to pull the strings and manipulate everything and everyone.

To a lesser extent, David Strathairn adds significance as District Attorney Lobruto, Willie's boss. From the moment Lobruto walks into Beachum's office to confront him, we see that Lobruto has world-weariness to him. As an elected public official, he is aware of what little he can accomplish and accepts everything else with ease. He has been beaten down by the system and takes his young Assistant DA's defection with the slightest disgruntlement. But he understands. If he had the same chance, he would probably take it.

Embeth Davidtz, Rosamunde Pike, Billy Burke, Bob Gunton and Fiona Shaw all play supporting characters, some with greater success and greater impact, but they all add to the texture of the story, making it interesting to watch.

"Fracture" is not a great film, but it is fun to watch all of the twists and turns, the machinations Hopkins' character puts everyone through. For it to be a great film, Hopkins would have to add something different to his character. Is it just me or does it seem odd that Crawford is playing mind games with a poor guy from the South, who came from a questionable background? Does Beachum's background sound familiar to anyone else? Did they ask Jodie Foster to take the role before she refused it because it was too similar to Clarice Starling? Gosling does a good job with the role, but Hopkins is such a great actor and this role is not a stretch that it seems like a disappointment.

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