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Fracture movie subtitles12/28/2023 While the screenplay by Daniel Pyne and Glenn Gers is pretty airtight, it's also too neat and clever, just like Ted's scheme. One of the pitfalls of chronicling the perfect crime is missing a stray plot hole that shakes the foundation of the tale when it's viewed in retrospect. Tiny cracks not only permeate its tightly-wound characters, but also its story. Yet 'Fracture,' a film about finding faults in others, is not without its own frailties. Hoblit obviously learned a lot in the 11 years between 'Primal Fear' and this movie, and here his artistry is on full display. Full of sweeping high angle shots and marvelous depth, the film effortlessly draws us into the story and under the characters' skin. Whereas the direction of 'Primal Fear' often seems utilitarian and uninspired, 'Fracture' runs like a finely oiled machine (or one of the ingenious marble contraptions in Ted's home), oozing style and sophistication at every turn. Hoblit is quite at home in the legal milieu, and though 'Fracture' can't compete story-wise with his first feature (1996's crackerjack courtroom drama, 'Primal Fear'), the film's look is so seductive, it's almost impossible to resist its charms. Not only does Willy refuse to follow the script, he also won't play the fool (at least not for long), and the two men engage in a delicious battle of wits, as Willy tries to find the evidence to convict Ted and wipe the smug look off his face.įilms don't get much slicker than 'Fracture,' but there's plenty of substance beneath its Teflon coating – a literate script infused with a few choice nuggets of humor, a fascinating plot, and fine performances across the board. Like a rarefied Hannibal Lecter, he salivates at the prospect of eating Willy for lunch and sending him from the courtroom with his tail between his legs. But there's something about Ted that intrigues him, and Willy, who loves putting criminals away almost as much as collecting a fat paycheck, eagerly takes his bait – and the case – and puts his higher ambitions temporarily on hold. County prosecutor, Willy is on his way up, and just accepted a lucrative position with a swanky private firm, where he'll work for the sleek, sexy Nikki (Rosamund Pike). At his arraignment, Ted thinks he's hit pay dirt when the equally cocky and arrogant Willy Beachum (Ryan Gosling) swaggers into the courtroom. He concocts what he believes to be the perfect crime – ingenious, tidy, untraceable – and he's cocky and arrogant enough to believe he can pull it off. He's also a control-freak and master manipulator, and when he catches his wife coloring outside his rigidly constructed lines, he decides her recalcitrant behavior and brazen betrayal deserve the ultimate punishment. Ted is a brilliant, meticulous engineer, able to predict actions and reactions with consummate skill. For in 'Fracture,' the mystery lies not in discovering who the shooter is, but in figuring out how he intends to escape retribution. Now, for most mysteries, such an act would be the film's climax or "big reveal." In this case, though, it's merely the opening salvo. Just a few minutes into Gregory Hoblit's ultra-stylish thriller, we see Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins) methodically shoot his much younger, unfaithful wife, Jennifer (Embeth Davidtz), at point-blank range. 'Fracture,' however, puts a clever spin on this age-old formula by quickly taking the "who" out of the equation. Whodunits have teased moviegoers' brains for decades by offering up a host of plausible suspects with sufficient motives to commit a violent crime.
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