Freedomland (2006)

A black police detective must solve a strange case of a kidnapped boy and deal with a big racial protest.

Director:

Joe Roth

Writers:

Richard Price (screenplay), Richard Price (novel)

Stars:

Julianne Moore, Samuel L. Jackson, Edie Falco

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Lorenzo Council
Julianne Moore	...	Brenda Martin
Edie Falco	...	Karen Collucci
Ron Eldard	...	Danny Martin
William Forsythe	...	Boyle
Aunjanue Ellis	...	Felicia
Anthony Mackie	...	Billy Williams
LaTanya Richardson Jackson	...	Marie
Clarke Peters	...	Reverend Longway
Peter Friedman	...	Lt. Gold
Domenick Lombardozzi	...	Leo Sullivan
Aasif Mandvi	...	Dr. Anil Chatterjee
Philip Bosco	...	Priest
Fly Williams III	...	Rafik
Portia	...	Doreen / Rafik's Sister

Storyline

Late one evening, Brenda Martin, a thirty-seven year old Caucasian woman from the proverbial wrong side of the tracks, enters Dempsy Medical Center in Dempsy, New Jersey with minor injuries, but she is also emotionally distraught. One of the people to who she tells her story is Dempsy Police Detective Lorenzo Council, a black man. That story is that she was just carjacked by another unknown black man when she took a shortcut that she had never traveled between the Armstrong housing projects, where she works at the Rainbow Club, a children's center, and her home in Gannon, New Jersey. Her emotional distress is because her four year old son, Cody, was asleep in the back seat of the car and is thus now in the hands of the carjacker. Brenda's brother, Danny Martin, a police detective in Gannon, cannot help but get directly involved in the investigation despite he operating outside his jurisdiction. His actions do not sit well with Council, who he insinuates is not only not doing his job, ...

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Plot Keywords:

police | mother | kidnapping | hospital | missing child | 

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Taglines:

The Truth Is Hiding Where No One Dares To Look.

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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

Did You Know?

Trivia

Samuel Jackson plays Dr. Arnold in Jurassic Park and Julianne Moore plays Sara Harding in Jurassic Park The Lost World.

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Goofs

When Lorenzo and Brenda are in the car driving through the crowd, in the long shot the windows are half-way down, and in the close shots the windows are all the way up.

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Quotes

Leo Sulivan: Let go and let God.

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Connections

Features Wheel of Fortune (1983)

User Reviews

I wanted to like it, and I did

I'll admit, I read the novel a few years ago and I was a big fan of it. So I went into the theater already wanting to like the movie. I wasn't as concerned with plot details as some other viewers apparently were. Since I knew what was going to happen, I simply focused on reliving the story, and seeing how the filmmakers interpreted it. It's such a dense novel with so much going on, I think Richard Price is the only person who could've adapted it and still kept the spirit of the original material. Now, all that being said...was it a good movie? In my opinion, yes it was. I felt empathy for all the characters (except Brenda's brother, who I felt contempt for). I was surprised that I was able to empathize with Brenda's character, but I credit Julianne Moore for that. She gave a performance that was filled with pain, and confusion, and fear, and all the emotions I would have imagined Brenda would be going through. Samuel Jackson played Lorenzo just as I hoped he would. Not over the top with a bunch of yelling and fist pounding. But as a man who realizes all too well what can happen when a white woman points the finger at a black man and yells "He did it!" The biggest problem I have with the movie is the way that it's being marketed. If I hadn't read the book, I would've never gone to see it based on it's trailer. It looks like just another missing child thriller. So I can understand why some viewers felt cheated when they saw the movie and realized that it's much more complex than that. It's about the politics of race, and how they can be manipulated. It's about the uneasy truce that exists in some communities, and how quickly a fuse can be lit to ignite tension. And most importantly, it's about people making choices that they regret, and the aftermath of those choices.

If you're looking for a missing child thriller, or a theatrical version of a CSI episode, this probably isn't for you. If a tough examination of race and class makes you uncomfortable, then don't bother with this one. But if you want to challenge yourself as a viewer, and get inside the minds of characters who are trying desperately to hold their worlds together, then I think you'll get something out of this film.

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Pictures [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

17 February 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Freedomland

Filming Locations:

Red Fox Diner Restaurant: 138 Route 9A, Elmsford, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$37,665,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,833,562, 19 February 2006

Gross USA:

$12,512,886

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$14,655,628

Company Credits

Production Co:

Revolution Studios, Scott Rudin Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min 112 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1