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Movie Review - Fracture (2007)
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(What this rating means)
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| Director: |
Gregory Hoblit |
| Starring: |
Anthony Hopkins, Ryan Gosling, David Strathairn, Rosamund Pike, and Billy Burke |
| Rated: |
R (for language and some violent content) |
| Length: |
113 minutes |
| Genre: |
Thriller |
| Tagline: |
If you look close enough, you'll find everyone has a weak spot. |
| Studio: |
New Line Cinema |
| Website: |
Fracture |
| Release: |
April 20, 2007 |
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PLOT
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Cocky to a fault, Ryan Gosling is an assistant DA assigned to what appears to be a slam dunk case against a man (Hopkins) accused
of killing his wife. The prosecution has a signed confession and the murder weapon, so the trial should be a mere formality.
However, the man accused of the murder is a hyper-intelligent aeronautical engineer who has meticulously thought this through.
The murder weapon? A ballistics test shows it hasn't been fired. And the signed confession? Hopkins claims it was coerced.
This is a game to him, and he plans on outsmarting his opponents. Will Gosling find the evidence needed to put him away? Or will he,
out of desperation, resort to planting evidence? Or will Hopkins pull off his scheme and get away with murder? A little cat-and-mouse
courtroom drama ensues.
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JOHNNY'S TAKE
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"Look closely enough and you'll find everything has a weak spot where, sooner or later, it will break." - Ted Crawford.
Much like all you ladies who mad-rush Johnny Betts at movie screenings, Fracture spends a lot of its runtime flirting with
greatness. The acting is great, the interaction between Hopkins and Gosling is great, and the film's ability to completely engage your
interest utilizes the adjective as well.
But just as Hopkins' character can discover minor faults in everything, I too possess the cunning ability to detect such chinks in the
ol' armor, and the film's main weak spot (its fracture, if you will), is that in retrospect, the final twist is so simplistic that it's
out of place with the rest of the supposed genius' master plan. As a genius mastermind myself, I know that if I were to attempt to pull
off the perfect crime then I would orchestrate something a little more elaborate. Thank goodness I use my brilliance for good,
right?
It's a fairly easy twist to telegraph, and because of that the climax fails to deliver the knockout punch I anticipated. The
relationship between Gosling and the attorney (Pike) from his new firm is also handled somewhat awkwardly. Initially they seem to be
exchanging innocent flirtations, but all of a sudden Gosling's in her bedroom receiving a Thanksgiving dinner invitation. I have a
feeling there's a scene lying on the cutting room floor that offers a better explanation.
Those squabbles aside, Fracture is a thoroughly enjoyable time at the movies. Hopkins' efforts to outsmart everybody are
intriguing, and Gosling transitions masterfully from the sloppy arrogance that leads to some crucial errors in the prosecution
to the determined focus he needs if he's going to put Hopkins away.
I don't hesitate to recommend this one; I just wish its weak spots hadn't been so easy to detect.
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DVD SPECIAL FEATURES
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Bad news for all of you desperately anticipating a little exciting director's commentary with Gregory Hoblit - it's nowhere to be found. All we get in regard to special features
is 34 minutes of deleted scenes and two alternate endings. The deleted scenes aren't really anything to email mama about, but they do consist of two different love scenes (no nudity
but still slightly graphic) that serve to flesh out the relationship between Gosling and his lawyer girlfriend. I told y'all there was something on the cutting floor that
offered a little more explanation to the Thanksgiving dinner invitation!
The alternate endings don't really offer any new revelations regarding twists but they do differ from the original in execution. Unfortunately, the two alternates are practically
the same. The only real difference is the cops showing up at Hopkins' house in the second alternate ending. Not really worth an additional 11 minutes. Watch the first one
and you've got all the variety you need.
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ODDS & ENDS
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- Screenwriter Glenn Gers' sister was working as a prosecutor in the Kansas City D.A.'s office when he began working on the project.
A year later, life imitated art and she took a job in the private sector at a corporate law firm. Gers took the opportunity to use his
sister as a reference guide, asking procedural questions and running story ideas by her.
- The characters jumped off the page into director Hoblit's consciousness, especially the scene in which Crawford (Hopkins) and
Willy (Gosling) first meet. "When I read that scene, I couldn't wait to shoot it," Hoblit acknowledges. "Everything else just radiated
from the confrontation between them. Being able to shoot the creative dynamic of that sequence was probably the single most exciting
day I've had in 25 years in this business."
- Surprisingly, Anthony Hopkins has only played two criminals in his career - Hannibal Lecter and this guy.
- Hopkins reveals his big, complicated secret on acting: "People make a big deal about acting, but I never treat it like a
mathematical formula. The character is an engineer - OK, I'm a smart criminal; they put me in nice clothes and give me an expensive
car to drive - OK, I'm a rich criminal. It's as simple as that."
- Acknowledged for a wicked sense of humor, Hopkins would tease the assembled crew by barking like a dog and then sit innocently
as a production assistant frantically searched to quiet the errant hound.
"He really does sound like a dog," declares Gosling.
- Who needs an Oscar if you can perfectly emulate a dog?
- A major focal point in the film is the Rube Goldberg-like machines, which adorn Ted Crawford's home and office. They serve as
dramatic metaphors for the story as well as for the intricate workings of the sociopath's diabolical mind.
A Rube Goldberg machine is a device that "accomplishes by complex means what seemingly could be done simply;" or something "having a
fantastically complicated, improvised appearance." It's an external sign used to show Crawford's inner person.
- After long examination and discussion, the filmmakers settled on using Dutch artist Mark Bishoff's sculptures as Crawford's work.
It had taken Bischoff, a music teacher, over ten years of loving labor to complete his intricate rolling ball machine. The filmmakers'
version weighed 250 pounds.
- Anthony Hopkins was inexplicably in Bad Company with Kerry Washington who was in The Dead Girl with Josh Brolin who
was in Hollow Man with Kevin Bacon.
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MAMA'S APPROVAL
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The theatrical version is just a tad rough around the edges for mama, but she could handle the edited-for-TV version.
Language - It's not that egregious. We're talking approximately 10 "f" bombs, a couple of G-d**ns, and a few "s" missiles.
Some violent content - As the rating states, there is some violent content. Not much at all. Hopkins shooting his wife in the
head is the worst of it. I don't think it's worse than what I see on CSI on a weekly basis.
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TRAILER COMPARISON
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If you're really interested in seeing the movie then I'd advise avoiding the trailer. It gives away a little more than it needs to.
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THE GIST
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If you like your thrillers stocked with humor, good acting, great dialogue, and enough mystery to compel your continued viewing then
you'll enjoy Fracture. Just don't expect this one to outsmart you.
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