This one flew under the radar. I don't know what the deal is, but there is quite a bit of star power in "The Next Three Days": Russell Crowe in the lead, Elizabeth Banks (take her or leave her for me, but she is still a name), Brian Dennehy looking pissed off as usual, and even Liam Neeson makes a brief cameo. It was directed by Paul Haggis, he of "Crash" and "In the Valley of Elah" fame, and has been screen-writer for blockbusters such as "Million-Dollar Baby" and "Casino Royale". Impressive resume. So that makes for a pretty solid line-up for this film, but it still must have been a limited release.
I have had a pretty good run so far with limited-release films (usually foreign), "The Class" or "Entre les murs" if you will, comes to mind. Well, "The Next Three Days" didn't disappoint. It is an interesting story and, at least I think, a pretty unique take. Russell Crowe's wife is thrown in prison for murder, and then he turns into something of a man-possessed to get her out. The story made for a captivating film and had a number of "thriller" moments. Watching Crowe go about his mission and the clever methods he uses kept both my and Jiayi's interest.
It wasn't without some weak points though. I found the acting to be nothing special, but maybe there wasn't room for it in this film. It did have a couple of lines of dialogue that made me wince, but thankfully not to many. I have never been a fan of big stars making cameo roles (George Clooney in "The Thin Red Line" was just retarded), and it didn't end here with Neeson. His character was pretty worthless, and the lines he was given were, in my mind, just bad. Some problems with realism in this one too. Crowe plays a community college professor with a bit of a paunch, but he ends of doing some stuff that Jason Bourne would be proud of. I mean, come on, at least make him a former Special Forces assassin or something. Oh, and Elizabeth Banks is not a good actress. There, I said it.
The problems that this movie don't detract from it too much. A less picky person will probably find this really enjoyable. Even with its faults, I still really enjoyed it, it fills the role of thriller quite well.
Verdict: See it for a nice Friday/Saturday night movie. Grade: B
If you liked this movie you might also like: "Next Three Days" is not really a prison film, but you should still see "The Shawshank Redemption" anyway. Lets stick with Russell Crowe here and say "State of Play", another solid thriller. Paul Haggis has been involved with some good films, check him out on IMDB.
I have had a pretty good run so far with limited-release films (usually foreign), "The Class" or "Entre les murs" if you will, comes to mind. Well, "The Next Three Days" didn't disappoint. It is an interesting story and, at least I think, a pretty unique take. Russell Crowe's wife is thrown in prison for murder, and then he turns into something of a man-possessed to get her out. The story made for a captivating film and had a number of "thriller" moments. Watching Crowe go about his mission and the clever methods he uses kept both my and Jiayi's interest.
It wasn't without some weak points though. I found the acting to be nothing special, but maybe there wasn't room for it in this film. It did have a couple of lines of dialogue that made me wince, but thankfully not to many. I have never been a fan of big stars making cameo roles (George Clooney in "The Thin Red Line" was just retarded), and it didn't end here with Neeson. His character was pretty worthless, and the lines he was given were, in my mind, just bad. Some problems with realism in this one too. Crowe plays a community college professor with a bit of a paunch, but he ends of doing some stuff that Jason Bourne would be proud of. I mean, come on, at least make him a former Special Forces assassin or something. Oh, and Elizabeth Banks is not a good actress. There, I said it.
The problems that this movie don't detract from it too much. A less picky person will probably find this really enjoyable. Even with its faults, I still really enjoyed it, it fills the role of thriller quite well.
Verdict: See it for a nice Friday/Saturday night movie. Grade: B
If you liked this movie you might also like: "Next Three Days" is not really a prison film, but you should still see "The Shawshank Redemption" anyway. Lets stick with Russell Crowe here and say "State of Play", another solid thriller. Paul Haggis has been involved with some good films, check him out on IMDB.
Good deal, I'll check this one out. For some reason, I thought it was going to be a dog and that you'd hate it, so I'm pleasantly surprised. It even got a pretty good graded on IMDB (7.4).--Uncle Paul
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