The two leads are on fine form, but the surrounding structure is too familiar from a thousand other films. Still, tense and occasionally twisty stuff.
Fracture (2007)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:13
Fresh:8
Rotten:5
Average Rating:5.8/10
Consensus: Though Fracture's plot is somewhat implausible, the onscreen face-off between Gosling and Hopkins overshadows any faults.
Rated: 15 [See Full Rating] for language and some violent content.
Runtime: 1 hr 53 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:20-04-2007
Synopsis: In director Gregory Hoblit's 2007 thriller, FRACTURE, one thing is clear--highly successful engineer Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins) has shot his wife (Embeth Davidtz). What is not clear, though, is... In director Gregory Hoblit's 2007 thriller, FRACTURE, one thing is clear--highly successful engineer Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins) has shot his wife (Embeth Davidtz). What is not clear, though, is how Willy Beachum (Ryan Gosling), an assertive assistant D.A. on the verge signing with a major law firm, will convict Crawford, since the calculating suspect is masterfully exploiting legal loopholes that may keep him a free man. As Beachum becomes more and more determined to beat Crawford at his own intricately setup game, he risks losing both his shot at the lucrative job and his new love, Nikki Gardner (Rosamund Pike). Easily Hoblit's finest film since 1996's PRIMAL FEAR, FRACTURE benefits from a similar sense of suspense, which is heightened by the fascinating interplay between Hopkins and Gosling. While Hopkins verges on Hannibal Lecter territory, he never makes the leap to that villain's macabre persona, instead making Crawford a chillingly detached criminal who finds room for occasional moments of disarming humor. And as Beachum, Gosling embodies young, aspiring swagger, making his character the polar opposite of his lost, drug-addled Oscar-nominated role in HALF NELSON. Aided by a smart script (courtesy of Glenn Gers and Daniel Pyne), Hopkins and Gosling take what could have been a decent courtroom drama, and elevate it to the level of a mesmerizing chess match. [More]
Starring: Anthony Hopkins, David Strathairn, Ryan Gosling, Billy Burke
Starring: Anthony Hopkins, David Strathairn, Ryan Gosling, Billy Burke, Rosamund Pike, Embeth Davidtz, Cliff Curtis, Fiona Shaw, Xander Berkeley, Joe Spano
Director: Gregory Hoblit
Director: Gregory Hoblit
Screenwriter: Daniel Pyne, Glenn Gers
Producer: Chuck Weinstock
Composer: Jeff Danna, Mychael Danna
Studio: New Line Cinema
Reviews for Fracture
Here is a big, handsome shyster of a legal thriller, pleading with the viewer to stick with its preposterous twists and turns on the guarantee that the crowning revelation will blow our socks off. In this, as in all things, the film is not to be trusted.
Guilty of being half an hour too long and having a villain who's far more interesting than the hero, but still quite fun as a piece of puzzle-solving.
The film is reminiscent of the kind of wealth-porn peddled by Adrian Lyne, and if you get bored with the plot, you can always pass the time picking out home furnishings.
A smart and snappy thriller that makes light work of its ethical dilemmas, Fracture is a little too neat and tidy to stick in the mind for long, but the Hopkins-Gosling pairing is choice, and neither comes up short.
Smart, fast-paced and intriguing. Not a perfect film, but a perfectly entertaining one.
The glib entertainment Fracture offers an assortment of tasty treats, notably the spectacle of that crafty scene stealer Anthony Hopkins mixing it up with that equally cunning screen nibbler Ryan Gosling.
The best way to enjoy it is to suspend your disbelief and soak up the actorly tête-à-tête that pits wily veteran Anthony Hopkins against young gun Ryan Gosling in the kind of courtroom potboiler that can be fun if you let it.
Up to a point, the movie has a certain intricacy and novelty. The trouble comes as it gropes for an ending.
An open-and-shut case becomes an elegantly framed battle of wits in Fracture, an absorbing legal thriller.
Shallow entertainment where you have no rooting interest in the outcome.
Latest News for Fracture
June 28, 2007:
Ryan Gosling Signs On to Peter Jackson's "Lovely Bones"
The 27-year-old actor will be playing the husband to 36-year-old Rachel Weisz. They'll be playing the parents of a (dead) 14-year-old girl in the Peter Jackson pic. More...
May 31, 2007:
Box Office Guru Preview: "Knocked Up" Expecting Solid Arrival
Call it the weekend of the actor/producer. Three new films with stars that do double duty behind the scenes (or have good agents that can snag a free credit) enter a marketplace... More...
May 13, 2007:
Box Office Guru Wrapup: Spidey Rules, Fonda Flops
Peter Parker suffered a massive sophomore slide, but "Spider-Man 3" still dominated the box office around the globe spending a second weekend at number one with no... More...
May 06, 2007:
Box Office Guru Wrapup: Spider-Man 3 Demolishes Records in Historic Debut
In the most lopsided box office victory in history, the hugely anticipated super sequel "Spider-Man 3" swung into theaters and monopolized the marketplace breaking the... More...
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