The Plot

When Lara Brennan (Elizabeth Banks) is arrested for the murder of a homeless woman, the world of her husband, John Brennan (Russell Crowe), is turned upside down. Several years later and John has decided to take matters into his own hands by breaking his wife out of jail.

The Thoughts

This film is a drama. No, wait. I apologise, I’m getting a bit confused here. It’s a thriller. Or is it an action film? Frankly I’m just not sure. Paul Haggis films have a habit of turning, albeit usually in a good way. Haggis has both written and directed some fantastic films in recent years, including some fantastic collaborative work with Clint Eastwood. As anyone who has seen the Haggis-penned Million Dollar Baby (2004) will know however, his films can go in unexpected directions. Once seen, it’s hard to forget the moment in Million Dollar Baby when the feel-good sports genre caves way to tough kitchen sink melodrama midway through the film. The central issue with The Next Three Days is not its abrupt changes of tone, which roughly divide the film into two halves as with Million Dollar Baby, but rather the lack of plot consistency that exist between the two halves. Unlike Million Dollar Baby, in which the gravity of the plot twist necessitates the shift in tone, The Next Three Days simply abandons its own plot details in the midst of its copious tonal changes, to jarring effect.

For example, the question of Lara Brennan’s (Elizabeth Banks) guilt or innocence is raised after she is arrested following the murder of a homeless woman at the start of the film. Her husband, played by Russell Crowe, in spite of the strong evidence against his wife, becomes obsessed with breaking her out of prison, utterly convinced of her innocence. At one point in the film, Lara reveals to her husband that she did, in fact, commit murder. Possibly this was said with the intention of thwarting her husband’s plan to break her out of prison, but who knows? The film doesn’t provide the audience with anything approaching an adequate explanation of the situation and the issue of Lara’s innocence or guilt is clumsily dealt with – that is to say it is all but abandoned in the second half of the running time, when The Next Three Days transforms into a heist film. And this is only one example amongst several of plot points that are established only to be forgotten in the transition.

Most disappointing of all for me was the film’s failure to capitalise on the links Russell Crowe’s character is repeatedly insinuated to share with Don Quixote. Don Quixote is a fascinating character and the comparison holds great potential; the problem is that the film completely loses its nerve to go ahead with it. Don Quixote is of course the famous story of the man who sets out one day to become a noble knight and achieve fame and fortune, disregarding the fact that he is now old and that knights no longer exist, if such noble knights ever did. The comparison the film makes is that both Russell Crowe and Don Quixote seek to achieve an impossible goal which they believe is a certainty. But the essence of Don Quixote is that the world he creates in his mind blinds him to all reality, with both amusing and tragic consequences. The combination of Don Quixote references and the aforementioned goings-on with Lara Brennan’s character lead to my anticipating an equivalent scene of one particular moment from Don Quixote: in one chapter, Don Quixote is staying at an inn (which he imagines to be a castle), when one night he has a romantic midnight encounter with a servant girl. Don Quixote of course sees her as ‘a goddess of beauty’. We are then told that none ‘of the good maiden’s attributes could discourage him, though they were enough to make any man who was not a muledriver vomit’. The sad thing is that the potential is there for just that scene in The Next Three Days – the bit where Russell Crowe breaks his wife out of jail only to have her stab him as a thank you – but the film doesn’t go the distance.

It is not good enough just to hint at more interesting things when there’s nothing of substance going on, because the resulting film looks worse for its half-baked pretensions. The pacing suffers heavily too. The film’s first half is too slow, packed as it is with allusions to Don Quixote and consequence-less, predictable plot twists; persist to the second half though and you’ve got yourself a serviceable heist film. Those looking for a decent Don Quixote-esque film, however, don’t bother with this – go treat yourself to the very best of the bunch, Martin Scorcese’s masterful King of Comedy (1982). That is, the best until a Hollywood film comes out with the sex scene between an old man in a suit of armour and the vomit-inducingly hideous girl I have been waiting for.

The Film Buzz Review Rating: ******~~~~ (6/10)

Release Date: 5th January 2011

Director: Paul Haggis

Writers: Paul Haggis (screenplay), Fred Cavayé (screenplay “Pour elle”) and Guillaume Lemans (screenplay “Pour elle”)

Links: IMDB, Official Site

The fifth collaboration between director Ridley Scott and award-winning Russell “Gladiator” Crowe explodes on the big screen as the much-anticipated Robin Hood. Based on a celebrated tale of English folklore that remains as familiar as fish and chips, Scott’s version is expected to have a plate full of comparisons.

The Plot

Set in Medieval England, this origin myth unfolds the story of Robin Longstride (Russell Crowe); a common yet gifted archer in King Richard the Lionheart’s (Danny Huston) army in the Third Crusade.

After the death of the king, Longstride endeavours to return to his native soil with his fellow soldiers, but encounter an ambush on the way from Sir Godfrey (Mark Strong), an English knight with French ancestry. Although Godfrey is temporarily driven out by Longstride and his band, the crowning of King John (Oscar Isaac), Richard’s vain younger brother, had enhanced Godfrey’s position to that of the Chancellor, giving him more incentive to terrorise civilians and strip the poor further of the little wealth which they had to begin with.

Godfrey’s notorious stirring and double-crossing personality leads to a war far greater than what was originally intended, though Longstride, supported by his archer companions, accumulate an apt force for the final battle on the south coast of England.

The Thoughts

The tales of Robin Hood were indeed childhood favourites of mine; and while I had foolishly missed the 1991 Prince of Thieves version, the Walt Disney classic had imprinted a fond memory during my pre-teen years, as had the books themselves. After hearing that another film was being made with its franchise – particularly with the ultimate combination of Russell Crowe and Ridley Scott - I eagerly counted down the weeks till its UK release.

Being my first time viewing Robin Hood with actual people – as opposed to foxes, lions and a snake – I was hesitant of what to expect from the characters. The quality of the film itself was breathtaking; director Scott pieces together impressive scenes of a late twelfth century England with authentic sounds, visions and appropriately-clad soldiers, nevertheless the plot itself I felt did not reach its potential in terms of capturing and intriguing the audience.

Considering this version is a “prequel” to the Robin Hood story most people may know of, it provides useful insight and thought to his character and the origins of the legend, however the portrayal of the events appeared somewhat messy and indefinite. The intention of the film had only ceased to be ambiguous at about midway; the first half lacking vivacity and clarity, although Crowe’s steady, subtle portrayal of the rebellious hero had undoubtedly endowed the audience with sufficient entertainment, as had the uplifting and comical Merry Men – a name which was not yet used during this period.

While the protagonists may receive little criticism, the villains I felt were conveyed inappropriately. Oscar Isaac’s annoying representation of King John had ruined his title, which would have otherwise been majestic – regardless of his vanity and arrogance. Even the lion in the animated Disney version had seemed appropriately intimidating for this character. Isaac appeared far too young and inexperienced to be taken seriously as King John, while Mark “Archy” Strong I believed had too ‘brute’ an appearance for the manipulating and merciless Sir Godfrey. He may well have suited the dim-witted, Cockney gang member in RocknRolla, but he certainly failed as a ruthless Medieval knight with an embarrassing French accent.

The film balances action, drama, romance and comedy astonishingly well, and although the fight scenes were as short-lived as the dialogue had lacked depth, it was Crowe’s usual, “man of steel” performance of an epic hero (besides his poor attempt at a Northern English accent) combined with Blanchett’s fervent yet charismatic depiction of Maid Marion that bring the characters and main storyline to life. Although the film has its flaws, it is certainly ‘hats off’ to Scott for a generally entertaining attempt at recreating the legend of one of the most-loved tales of England.

The Film Buzz Rating: *******½~~ (7.5/10)

UK Release Date: 12th May 2010

Director: Ridley Scott

Writer: Brian Helgeland

Links: IMDB, Official Site

So what can we expect to be different from the other hundred times this story has been told? Perhaps it will be somewhat like 2004′s King Arthur - darker, bloodier more savage than any story of King Arthur that was told before.

All the characters that we associate with Robin Hood such as Maid Marian, Little John, King Richard, Prince John, Sheriff of Nottingham, all make an appearance in this story, so it’s more than likely that we can expect a retelling of this classic tale –  the story of how the archer Robin becomes Robin of the Hood.

Robin Hood

I personally love these new modern re-envisioning of old stories. I think modern technology has finally got to a point where it’s possible to make these old stories seem far more believeable than they did before. So I can’t wait for this to hit theatres this year.

Russell Crowe is joined by Cate Blanchett, Matthew Macfadyen, Danny Huston, Mark Strong and Kevin Durand and of course none other than Ridley Scott directs.

The Film Buzz Anticipation Rating: 7.5/10

UK Cinema Release Date: 14th May 2010

Director: Ridley Scott

Writer’s: Brian Helgeland, Ethan Reiff & Cyrus Voris

Links: IMDB, Official Site