Fracture (2007/I)

Director:

Gregory Hoblit

Writers (WGA):

Daniel Pyne (screenplay) and
Glenn Gers (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

20 April 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

If you look close enough, you'll find everyone has a weak spot.

Plot:

An attorney intent on climbing the career ladder toward success, finds an unlikely opponent in a manipulative criminal he's trying to prosecute.

Plot Keywords:

Engineer | Firm | Court | Prosecutor | Trial

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Anthony Hopkins	...	Ted Crawford
Ryan Gosling	...	Willy Beachum
David Strathairn	...	DA Joe Lobruto
Rosamund Pike	...	Nikki Gardner
Embeth Davidtz	...	Jennifer Crawford
Billy Burke	...	Lt. Robert 'Rob' Nunally
Cliff Curtis	...	Detective Flores
Fiona Shaw	...	Judge Robinson
Bob Gunton	...	Judge Gardner
Josh Stamberg	...	Norman Foster
Xander Berkeley	...	Judge Moran
Zoe Kazan	...	Mona
Judith Scott	...	Resident
Gary Cervantes	...	Ciro (as Carlos Cervantes)
Petrea Burchard	...	Dr. Marion Kang

Also Known As:

Das perfekte Verbrechen (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for language and some violent content.

Runtime:

113 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Ireland:15A | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/Manitoba/Ontario) | UK:15 | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | Singapore:PG | USA:R (certificate #43317) | Hong Kong:IIA | Finland:K-13 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Argentina:16 | Netherlands:12 | Denmark:15 | Brazil:14 | Germany:12 | Portugal:M/12 | Norway:11 | Sweden:11 | Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Italy:T | Malaysia:U | Australia:M | New Zealand:M | Norway:10 (TV rating) | Norway:15 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

Dijon Street, Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

New Line Cinema

Trivia:

The car driven by Anthony Hopkins is a Porsche Carrera GT (10 Cyl. 612 HP). After 1270 handcrafted pieces Porsche cancelled the series in April 2006. The price was about $670,000.

Goofs:

Factual errors: At the beginning of the movie when EMTs are working with Jennifer Crawford, they are heard saying "she has a pulse" and then administering chest compressions. According to BLS, when the patient has a palpable pulse, chest compressions are not administered.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Crawford's Secretary: The NTSB guys are here about that bulkhead problem.
Ted Crawford: OK, thanks.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Getaway: (#16.24)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Nite Becomes Day

Absolutely Unremarkable

When structural engineer Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins) learns his wife is cheating on him, he concocts the perfect murder to get revenge without being caught. Assigned to the case is hotshot attorney Willy Beachum (Ryan Gosling) who is ready to leave the D.A's. office to join a big money legal firm, but when he's challenged by Crawford's case, he's willing to risk everything to prove the man is guilty.

Given the talented cast, Fracture should have been more than a by-the-numbers thriller but that's exactly what it was. It features a few good performances although they are working with some unremarkable material and can't quite lift the film above mediocrity. The uninspired direction was a bit surprising given the track record of director Gregory Hoblit. He managed to keep things safe and predictable without really adding anything special to the film. I guess he was relying on the strength of his cast which only worked to an extent. The scenes with Gosling and Hopkins were interesting to watch but whenever Hopkins was absent, the film seriously dragged and Gosling's character was really unlikable so it was hard to root for him.

The screenplay was only average with some decent dialog being the highlight of it. The way the screenwriter played out the crime was very formulaic and pretty predictable. The ending was fairly obvious from the beginning and it wasn't a big twist ending that makes the viewer feel smart for figuring it out but rather it was an ending that makes the viewer wonder how these supposedly smart characters weren't able to figure it out. So save for some scenes with Gosling and Hopkins, the audience gets to watch a bland story unfold without any real sense of interest.

Luckily, the casting director did a great job and the performances were able to save the film. Anthony Hopkins was playing a familiar character yet it was still great to watch him on screen and he was the best part about the movie. Ryan Gosling was also pretty good and he managed to keep up with Hopkins. Rosamund Pike was decent, a bit dry though. I really liked Embeth Davidtz and it's such a shame that she didn't get a lot of screen time although this was expected. David Strathairn was decent although a bit wasted with an undeveloped character. Overall, Fracture features a strong cast stuck in average material and it ends up being forgettable. Rating 6/10