Law Abiding Citizen (2009)

A frustrated man decides to take justice into his own hands after a plea bargain sets one of his family's killers free. He targets not only the killer but also the district attorney and others involved in the deal.

Director:

F. Gary Gray

Writer:

Kurt Wimmer

Stars:

Gerard Butler, Jamie Foxx, Leslie Bibb

3 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jamie Foxx	...	Nick Rice
Gerard Butler	...	Clyde Shelton
Colm Meaney	...	Detective Dunnigan
Bruce McGill	...	Jonas Cantrell
Leslie Bibb	...	Sarah Lowell
Michael Irby	...	Detective Garza
Gregory Itzin	...	Warden Iger
Regina Hall	...	Kelly Rice
Emerald-Angel Young	...	Denise Rice (as Emerald Angel Young)
Christian Stolte	...	Clarence Darby
Annie Corley	...	Judge Laura Burch
Richard Portnow	...	Bill Reynolds
Viola Davis	...	Mayor
Michael Kelly	...	Bray
Josh Stewart	...	Rupert Ames (as Joshua Stewart)

Storyline

Clyde Shelton's family is brutally murdered. The ones responsible are caught. However, because of improper procedure, the D.A., Nick Rice only has circumstantial evidence. So he decides to get one of them to testify against the other. When Shelton learns of this, he is not happy. Ten years later, the one who was convicted is being executed but something goes wrong; his execution goes awry and he suffers. They learn that someone tampered with the machine. And the other one is found dead, killed in a gruesome manner. Rice suspects Shelton, so he has him picked up. At first, Shelton agrees to a plea agreement with Rice but changes his mind. It appears that Shelton is not done, it appears he blames the whole system and is declaring war on it going after everyone involved with his family's case. So Rice has to stop him but Shelton is way ahead of him.

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Plot Keywords:

justice | deal | investigation | criminal mastermind | looking at oneself in a mirror | 

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Taglines:

Justice At Any Cost

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong bloody brutal violence and torture, a scene of rape, and pervasive language

Details

Official Sites:

Constantin Film [Germany] Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 October 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Law Abiding Citizen

Filming Locations:

Girard Point, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$21,039,502, 18 October 2009, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$73,343,413, 31 January 2010

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$126,690,726, 12 August 2012

Company Credits

Production Co:

G-BASE, The Film Department, Warp Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min 118 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Darby's ring tone is "Bloodline" by Slayer.

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Goofs

The asparagus, which Clyde Shelton is eating in the jail scene, changes sizes between several shots.

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Quotes

Clyde Shelton: [In Nick's office] I didn't hear back from you and I made some notes on the case, some good ideas.
Nick Rice: Do you trust me?
Clyde Shelton: Yes, of course.
Nick Rice: Darby has agreed to testify against Ames with Darby's testimony. Ames will go to death row.
Clyde Shelton: What about Darby then?
Nick Rice: Darby will plead guilty of murder.
Clyde Shelton: In what degree?
Nick Rice: Third.
Clyde Shelton: Then he would only serve five years at best? I'm sorry I don't understand.
Nick Rice: We had a setback. The judge ruled the DNA evidence is inadmissible.
[...]

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: The Worst Films of 2009 (2010)

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Soundtracks

Bloodline
Written by Tom Araya (as Tomas Araya), Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman
Performed by Slayer
Courtesy of American Recordings, a unit of Sony Music Entertainment
By Arrangement with Sony Music Licensing

User Reviews

Law Abiding Citizen will not disappoint.

This movie really takes the cake. It's focused on a father (Clyde) who gets beaten and his wife and daughter are killed by 2 crooks. However the crooks' punishment was dimmed down because of a deal made by the lawyers(Jamie Fox). 10 years later, Clyde decides to take out the entire corrupt justice system.

This movie really keeps you on the edge of your seat, and the main character Clyde really makes this movie something memorable and just extraordinary. You can compare Clyde to the Joker pretty much, but in my opinion 10 times better. Clyde devises sneaky and cunning ways by taking down his victims and the whole sense on whether he is the hero or villain also adds to the excitement. Jamie Fox also does a great job playing his character, a heroic yet corrupt lawyer.

There are a few scenes that will guaranteed make you laugh and a few scenes that will pretty much tell you that Clyde is just one kickbutt character, no questions about it. Every scene you will be wondering what will happen next, because you honestly won't know. The movie has a few twists and turns and will always keep you guessing. If you want to see something that is highly suspenseful, will keep you on the edge of your seat, and includes 2 very unique and questionable characters, then you must see this movie. Law Abiding Citizen will not disappoint.