Fracture (2007)

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

Director:

Gregory Hoblit

Writers:

Daniel Pyne (screenplay), Glenn Gers (screenplay),

Stars:

Anthony Hopkins, Ryan Gosling, David Strathairn

1 win & 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 Carlos Cervantes	...	Ciro (as Carlos Cervantes)
Petrea Burchard	...	Dr. Marion Kang

Storyline

Wealthy, brilliant, and meticulous Ted Crawford, a structural engineer in Los Angeles, shoots his wife and entraps her lover. He signs a confession; at the arraignment, he asserts his rights to represent himself and asks the court to move immediately to trial. The prosecutor is Willy Beachum, a hotshot who's soon to join a fancy civil-law firm, told by everyone it's an open and shut case. Crawford sees Beachum's weakness, the hairline fracture of his character: Willy's a winner. The engineer sets in motion a clockwork crime with all the objects moving in ways he predicts.

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Plot Keywords:

court | engineer | murder weapon | trial | confession | 

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Taglines:

J'ai tué ma femme. Prouvez-le. (I killed my wife. Prove it.) [France]

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some violent content

Details

Official Sites:

Metropolitan Filmexport [fr] New Line Cinema [us]

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 April 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Crimen perfecto

Filming Locations:

4411 Noeline Avenue, Encino, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£851,289 (UK) (20 April 2007)

Gross:

$39,004,700 (USA) (20 July 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

New Line Cinema, Castle Rock Entertainment, Weinstock Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

After the arraigning judge refers to Willy Beachum as 007 he sleeps with Nikki Gardner. Rosamund Pike who played Nikki also portrayed Miranda Frost in Die Another Day. In that movie Miranda slept with 007.

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Goofs

When Willy is reading Dr Seuss to Jennifer in the hospital and the nurse walks in we see the back cover of the book. The spine of the book should be pointing towards Willy's left side but it's actually pointing to his right. Thus, he's holding the book upside down.

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Quotes

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

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Crazy Credits

The end credits contain, in all lower case letters, the following: "in memory of david ronne"

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Connections

Featured in Getaway: Episode #16.24 (2007)

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Soundtracks

"Nite Becomes Day"
Written by Citizen Cope (as Clarence Greenwood)
Performed by Citizen Cope
Courtesy of The RCA Records Label
By Arrangement with Sony BMG Music Entertainment

User Reviews

Will keep you glued to your seat

The tagline of this film sounds interesting, but also shows the movie's thin plot. 'I shot my wife. Prove it.' Ultimately, the film is smart and witty and keeps you intrigued the entire time as you try find a way to do what the tagline asks you to. However, that's it. Naturally, Anthony Hopkins can do now wrong and 'newbie' Ryan Gosling does really well. Together in a scene, these two are awesome.

What I like about this film is that it totally focuses on the Hopkins/Gosling story-line. In many other films like these there's always that the policemen/attorneys (in this case Gosling) fall in love and then mess it up/ruin their marriage because the case is tearing them apart, you know the drill. There's always some sub story-line involving romance. Gosling finds romance in this movie with Rosamund Pike's character, but it doesn't evolve into another story-line. It doesn't take Willy Beachum's (Ryan Gosling) eyes off the price and even when it falls apart, he doesn't appear to care much (it's all about getting Crawford behind bars) or to feel a need to make it right. I like that. I mean, I love romance in films, but this movie shouldn't be about that and it's not.

Also, the fact that Ted Crawford (Hopkins) is in complete control over everything and everyone in this film astonishes me. This man plays roles like these so well! He just keeps you glued to the screen. The way he is in charge of Willy for (almost!) the entire film is just enjoyable to watch, making the end of the film even more enjoyable when the story comes out and the roles change.

Another reason to praise Gosling for the way he portrayed Willy Beachum. Anthony Hopkins is a legend. He is what draws people to theatres and he is one of the most brilliant actors of all times. Plus, he portrays such a strong character here that I can't help but praise Gosling for holding his own in a very strong manner. Scenes with Gosling are entertaining to watch. You feel drawn to him in almost the same way you feel drawn to Hopkins, even though Willy is in a dark place for most of the film and is hardly in control. Gosling's got great timing.

The story-line might be a little thin and fragile, the outcome is worth it. The movie surprises in more than one way, not in the last place because of the pretty much brilliant performances of both actors. Gosling is going to be big.

8/10