Assuming the answer to Paul755 was "yes, this is a POST RELEASE thread" and I don't need to start a separate one.. I'm sharing my thoughts here:
I can't quite get behind the critics' reaction to this one, which has for the most part been resoundingly negative. Don't get me wrong: I loathed Crowe's grey, glum and sullen ROBIN HOOD as much as the next person, and he's definitely been in a slump as of late.. but for whatever reason this one worked for me. At this late date, as much as I might wish it were otherwise, I must admit Crowe is an actor who has failed to live up to his early potential... but with that said, I'm not sure this is one of his missteps. Yeah, yeah, I know, it's the work of Paul "Crash" Haggis, but that doesn't change the fact the final 45 minutes put me on the edge of my seat. I think it was the combination of tight plotting, and the sense that the characters were simply ordinary human beings, that helped ratchet up the tension to levels few movies reach. The "action", such as it is, wouldn't be able to hold it's own against a BOURNE film in terms of kineticism, but the fact I bought into the reality of the world made every small evasion and momentary victory seem that much more powerful. It never appeared remotely possible that Crowe and Banks were more than 35 seconds from their inevitable capture, and there was a wonderful feeling of watching someone hanging on by the skin of his teeth and the sheer power of his wits as Crowe's plan was put into effect. I loved the way that Banks reacts with exhausted exasperation when Crowe first tries to spring her from the hospital, refusing to take part in his jail break attempt. The odds are clearly close to hopeless, but then he reminds her that he's left them with no other option, and we the audience are forced to run with them. As the chase goes on, I began to wonder if he *could* really pull it off, but the outcome never seemed certain (this is why I no longer watch trailers, I'm sure footage of their chase would have made the cut on a teaser, and spoiled some of the best moments)
Some have said Banks seemed cold and was hard to like, but I think it worked. I've always been a prolific fan of hers, not simply because she's a home town hero. She has great talent combined with an easy screen presence. We needed to be able to see her as Crowe did, and she let us in. I really didn't know if she was guilty, but I also knew it didn't matter. If Crowe's family was going to have a future, he needed to act. Banks may have been a killer or she may have been innocent, but that didn't change the fact his kid needed his mother. Crowe wasn't super suave or a genius, he was kind of a chubby cranky guy who didn't seem like he'd have a future without his family and so he found himself left with few options. The subplot with Olivia Wilde offers us a glimpse of a another possible future, a new life, but then the moment of choice came and he chose to work to save his family rather than start over, even though this came at great personal risk. These choices felt like they carried great weight, which is more than I can say for most movies. For most films I watch, the characters could be striving to save the world from aliens or simply their own lives from the bad guys, and yet they does a film take time for our characters to grapple with the consequences of their actions and the enormity of the risk involved. I felt like THE NEXT THREE DAYS delved into this under explored aspect of the action film while still remaining exciting on a technical level (many of the chase moments are just well executed on a basic film making level), and for that reason it was successful
Oh, and Neeson was fantastic in his little cameo, and the fun of having him pop up helped keep the movie chugging along. The part where Crowe let's slip that his questions are based in more than idle curiosity is marvelously handled, with Neeson speaking in hypothetical generalities "Well, that depends if it's in the country or the city" only to have Crowe quickly specify "The city"
So yes, I'll declare this one a small win for Crowe, Crash Haggis, E-Banks. It's by no means a classic and I might not revisit it again for a long time, but Crowe's clever escape made for a more than engaging movie watching experience. It would be great to get more, but the films that are capable of capturing and holding my attention on a visceral level are few and far between in recent years, and this was one
This movie was pretty awsome if u like the 80's B horror. Its on Netflix
Where the hell are u gonna find gravey flavored condoms in any other movie ...........huh............... I LOVE U TURKEY!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was very excited to see the American Reunion movie. I saw American Pie just after college and remembered it was quite funny. Jim, Michelle, Oz, Heather, Stifler reunite for their high school...
this is the song to have fun on.
