Cast: Ashley Judd, Morgan Freeman, Jim Caviezel, Adam Scott, Amanda Peet, Bruce Davison
Director: Carl Franklin
Producers: Arnon Milchan, Janet Yang, Jesse B'Franklin
Screenplay: Yuri Zeltser & Cary Bickley, based on the novel by Joseph Finder
Cinematography: Theo van de Sande
Music: Graeme Revell
U.S. Distributor: 20th Century Fox
High Crimes will doubtlessly hold some appeal for fans of pre-packaged courtroom thrillers. Like the cinematic equivalent of a TV dinner, this movie offers conveniently prepared, familiar ingredients that amount to something less than filling or satisfying. It's like a low-rent fusion of A Few Good Men with Jagged Edge, or, to put it another way, think John Grisham takes on the military. I have seen far worse things in recent weeks, but it's so damn depressing to be stuck watching something this uninspired. Thrillers are supposed to thrill, not result in viewers going down a checklist to make sure that all of the expected formulaic elements have been properly placed.
It would be easy enough to denigrate High Crimes on the grounds of its being unrealistic and logically flawed, but that would be unfair since, by their nature, most courtroom thrillers fall into this category. Viewers attending such a movie are not expecting a penetrating exploration of the legal system at work. However, they are anticipating some nice twists and turns and a surge of adrenaline to accompany the climax. High Crimes doesn't deliver in those areas. The storyline is so predictable and the false ending so obvious that only someone who has never seen a movie like this will be surprised. And, while all of the expected trappings of the courtroom thriller are in evidence, including surprise trial revelations and brilliant legal maneuvering by the lawyers, they have trouble provoking more than a yawn.
High Crimes introduces us to the protagonist, Claire Kubik, a hotshot defense attorney who fits the stereotype. As played by Ashley Judd, Claire is soft and hard in all the right places, but this isn't a groundbreaking performance. Judd, who used to do real acting (see Ruby in Paradise and Normal Life for examples), has lately been pigeonholed into starring roles in cheesy thrillers (Eye of the Beholder, Double Jeopardy). The charisma is still there, but it's fading fast. The same cannot be said of Jim Caviezel, who turns in another one-note, sleepwalking performance as Claire's loving husband, Tom. At any rate, it seems that Tom isn't who he claims to be - he's actually an ex-special ops officer wanted for mass murder. The government finally catches up to him in his new identity, and it's on Claire's shoulders to help him beat the rap and avoid the death penalty. She is aided by Tom's military advocate, Lt. Terrence Embry (Adam Scott), and her "wild card", Charlie Grimes (Morgan Freeman), an ex-drunk who has had some success with military cases. Standing in her way is the imposing figure of Brig. General William Marks (Bruce Davison, in a watered-down version of the Jack Nicholson part from A Few Good Men), who appears to be untouchable, even though he may be at the top of the cover-up that has resulted in her husband's arrest.
The chief pleasure of High Crimes (and it's a limited one) comes from watching Morgan Freeman, who can bring a sense of integrity to even the silliest thriller. He's the kind of actor who can make the most outlandish line of dialogue sound almost reasonable. He did it in his previous outing, Along Came a Spider, and he does it here. Freeman and Judd, who previously worked together in the infinitely superior Kiss the Girls, have a nice, unforced chemistry. It's too bad they don't have more scenes together. For director Carl Franklin, who has done a pair of unconventional thrillers, One False Move and Devil in a Blue Dress, High Crimes is an unmistakable come-down. This film has none of the freshness of those earlier efforts. Stale and clichéd to a fault, High Crimes is the kind of movie that might play well to someone lying on a sofa with nothing better to do some Saturday night, but it's not worth a trip to the local multiplex, even for those who like the genre and the actors.
© 2002 James Berardinelli