FRACTURE
New Line Cinema
Rated RSTARRING:
Anthony Hopkins, Ryan Gosling, Rob Nunally, and Embeth Davidtz
THE VERDICT:
A stellar cast keeps a middling plot well afloat without losing audience’s interests.
Occasionally, a good cast can keep a film from stumbling over the edge of mediocrity.
The cast of “Fracture” is a fine example.
Anthony Hopkins (is there any reason to list his films here?) portrays structural engineer Ted Crawford, a man so meticulous he makes Werner Von Braun look like a complete slob. His entire existence is based on his innate ability to spot the weakness in anything, which in turn makes him incredibly good at disguising his own weaknesses.
A kink has presented itself in Crawford’s life in the form of adultery committed by his wife, Jennifer (Embeth Davidtz, “Schindler’s List”). Unable to deal with imperfection, Crawford “fixes” the problem by shooting his wife and placing her in a coma.
The police are not long in arriving at the scene, and the police negotiator that eventually arrests Crawford is none other than the man his wife had been sleeping with, Rob Nunally (Billy Burke, “Ladder 49”).
Taking the case as an assistant district attorney is Ryan Gosling’s Willy Beachum, a hard-working but ultimately self-serving young prosecutor with a 97 percent conviction rate and a plush new job offer from corporate law firm Wooton Sims. Already on his way out of the D.A.’s office, Beachum handles the arraignment of Crawford because it appears to be an open-and-shut case requiring little effort.
Crawford has other ideas. Waiving his right to council and representing himself, he challenges Beachum to stay on the case, which Beachum gladly takes due to the simple appearance of the case. The real meat of the movie begins here with the confrontation between Crawford and Beachum.
There has been some speculation that Hopkins is just taking this opportunity to play Hannibal Lecter one more time. This is untrue. The only similarity between the two is their intelligence and the fact that they are in prison. Crawford is not a lethal, cold-blooded, soulless murderer a la Lecter, but instead a brilliant, typically law-abiding man with a penchant for constructing odd machines that keep marbles constantly in motion.
The smallest miscalculation will send the marbles flying off their tracks, an allegory that mirrors the delicate nature of the case at hand for both Crawford and Beachum.
Hopkins is outstanding in his performance of Crawford, and the interaction with Beachum adds a great new dimension to the film. As Beachum, Gosling further shows the versatility he contains that he first displayed in “Half Nelson.”
He starts out a cocky, success-starved litigator, but as the film progresses and he sees a humiliating loss on the horizon, he starts to break down. As it becomes clear that Crawford may get away clean, Gosling’s character begins to become more passionate about the case, but he thankfully sidesteps the clich of the heartless-lawyer-turned-caring-crime-fighter. Gosling’s Beachum seems to take the case more seriously simply because he is getting humiliated.
His performance, coupled with the one from “Half Nelson,” shows that he is an actor to watch in the future.
Crawford’s way of continually playing mind games with Beachum adds a compelling aspect to the film, portraying two equal egoists fighting each other, both attempting to find the imperfections in the other’s plan. Crawford’s cryptic ways are constantly nerve-wracking, and Beachum’s frenzied struggle to untangle Crawford’s crime does little to ease the tension.
While the performances are riveting, the technical aspects of the film could’ve used some work. Very little of Gregory Hoblit’s direction steps outside of the typical murder case formula, and the plot twists aren’t hard to see on the horizon. The mood of the film stays constant throughout, without only minimal builds at obvious points.
Kramer Morgenthau’s cinematography is nothing new, and sometimes even becomes questionable. In one instance, the camera pans up at the ceiling as if something important floated above the actor’s heads, but then … nothing happens. Shooting through the marble machines is mildly interesting, but does little to add to any scene the trick is used in.
The story is well-written for the most part, if not revolutionary. The romantic element between Beachum and his supervisor at Wooton Sims, Nikki Gardner (Rosamund Pike, “Die Another Day”), while a little abrupt, adds an element to the story without being needless, as romantic side plots often end up becoming. The implementation of twists and other plot devices is completely believable, explaining all details of the case without leaving the viewer confused.
The mediocre parts of the film don’t outweigh the excellent performances, though, and the story remains interesting throughout. While “Fracture’s” weaknesses may be easy to spot, they aren’t enough to bring down the whole picture.