Edison (2005)

Upon discovering a den of corrupt policemen, a fresh-faced journalist makes shaky allies in a jaded reporter and investigator for a powerful district attorney.

Director:

David J. Burke

Writer:

David J. Burke

Stars:

Morgan Freeman, Kevin Spacey, Justin Timberlake

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Morgan Freeman	...	Ashford
Kevin Spacey	...	Wallace
Justin Timberlake	...	Pollack
LL Cool J	...	Deed
Dylan McDermott	...	Lazerov
John Heard	...	Tilman
Cary Elwes	...	Reigert
Roselyn Sanchez	...	Maria
Damien Dante Wayans	...	Isiaha
Garfield Wilson	...	Rook
Marco Sanchez	...	Reyes
Darryl Quon	...	Wu
Andrew Jackson	...	Ives
Tim Perez	...	Butler (as Tim Paul Perez)
Piper Perabo	...	Willow

Storyline

Josh Pollack, a naive and ambitious reporter, is convinced the F.R.A.T., an elite force within the Edison Police Department, is corrupted. Working on a homicide case, he begins to unearth evidence which suggests that the entire justice system is willingly turning a blind eye to the abuses of the this force. When his life and that of his girlfriend are threatened from his research, he join forces with his editor, a once-famous reporter, and a renown private detective to bring down the F.R.A.T. and every one behind it.

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Plot Keywords:

reporter | justice | detective | district attorney | police | 

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Taglines:

Corruption, Righteousness, Lawless, In this city, only the cops are above the law.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence and language, and brief drug use

Details

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 November 2005 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Edison Force

Filming Locations:

Langley, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$25,150,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Millennium Films, Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films (EFO Films), VIP 3 Medienfonds

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min 97 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White (flashback scenes) Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Sergeant Frances Lazerov is chasing one of the bank robbers in the beginning of the movie, he says "Come out, come out, wherever you are.", which is a line taken from The Third Man (1949) - originally spoken by Harry Lime (Orson Welles).

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Goofs

Pollack makes a Xerox copy in the archive: He folds back the file and puts it on the exposure glass. He leaves the top cover open, he keeps down the booklet by hand and he starts copying. At the next moment we can see the booklet unfolded and pressed down by the closed top cover.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Deed: You're a big venue now. Global commerce, sports franchises, chit chat cafés. But you don't get it, because you don't see it. Life is not what you think it is. Because of guys like us, you can go on thinking it, 'til reality sets in. Reality's a motherfucker.

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Connections

Referenced in Entourage: Give a Little Bit (2009)

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Soundtracks

Truce
Written and Produced by Marcus Brown @ Machine Head
Mixed by Marcus Brown
Guitar by Monte Pittman
Published by Venice Collective Music (BMI)
Courtesy of Dew North

User Reviews

Lukewarm performances in a fantasy world

LL Cool J performed much better in this movie that I expected! He did a fabulous job acting as a "renegade" cop within a "renegade" department. From the very beginning, he does a great job of building viewer empathy for his character and the predicament he's in. He acts as a sort of "gentle giant" -- a person whose rough exterior can scare anybody, yet whose heart is clearly in the right place from the very start -- and he does an amazing job. He was quite clearly the best character in the movie.

This was certainly a performance that will not win Morgan Freeman any awards. After starring in powerhouse films like the Shawshank Redemption this film was certainly a step down. His role in Edison simply did not allow him to show his true talents as an actor -- and in terms of the conglomeration of characters placed him sadly on a back burner. There are so many ways his character (Moses Ashford) could have taken a more pivotal role. That he didn't was disappointing and a true let-down. I was hoping to see more from him in this film.

Timberlake ought to have stayed in the music industry. His portrayal of a young journalist was poorly acted and unpersuasive. This movie is a typical action movie that (at least initially) bears some resemblance to corrupt police affairs LA has experienced in the past. Being an action movie, it has its share of shoot-em-up scenes, blood, and guts. These scenes are typically unrealistic and painfully predictable. Watching the beginning of the movie there is very little suspense as to what will happen at the end -- think of what you would typically expect in a good-cops/bad-cops conflict -- and it bears little resemblance to a REAL police shoot-out.

What irked me most was the way Timberlake's character behaved during shoot-out scenes. He starts out having guns and not using them. Then when he finally gets around to using one he fires it as if he's been firing a gun his whole life. Then he runs out of bullets and doesn't have a gun -- and 30 seconds later, without moving or anything -- suddenly has 2 more fully loaded guns AND extra ammo?! Little plot errors like this really ruined the movie for me.

If what you are looking for is a blatantly fictional plot in a fantasy world where everything turns out okay, then you'll probably love this movie. Personally, it doesn't matter to me what KIND of movie it is as long as it is realistic. Make me believe that the story is true. This story was so obviously fictional in so many aspects that I came away feeling unsatisfied.