Conviction (2010)

A working mother puts herself through law school in an effort to represent her brother, who has been wrongfully convicted of murder and has exhausted his chances to appeal his conviction through public defenders.

Director:

Tony Goldwyn

Writer:

Pamela Gray

Stars:

Hilary Swank, Sam Rockwell, Melissa Leo

9 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Hilary Swank	...	Betty Anne Waters
Sam Rockwell	...	Kenny Waters
Thomas D. Mahard	...	Law Professor (as Thomas Mahard)
Owen Campbell	...	Ben
Conor Donovan	...	Richard
Laurie Brown	...	Law Professor 2
John Pyper-Ferguson	...	Aidan
Minnie Driver	...	Abra Rice
Ele Bardha	...	Don
Melissa Leo	...	Nancy Taylor
Rusty Mewha	...	Desk Sergeant
Marc Macaulay	...	Officer Boisseau
Bailee Madison	...	Young Betty Anne
Tobias Campbell	...	Young Kenny
Frank Zieger	...	Boyfriend

Storyline

Betty Anne Waters (Swank) is a high school dropout who spent nearly two decades working as a single mother while putting herself through law school, tirelessly trying to beat the system and overturn her brother's (Rockwell) unjust murder conviction.

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Plot Keywords:

year 1995 | year 2001 | year 1992 | what happened to epilogue | ends with biographical notes | 

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Taglines:

The incredible true story of Betty Anne Waters

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Genres:

Biography | Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some violent images

Did You Know?

Trivia

Hilary Swank didn't meet her real-life character Betty Anne Waters until just before the filming began. She says she wanted to get into the character, not just mimic someone.

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Goofs

In various scenes where Hilary Swank and Sam Rockwell's characters are meeting in the jail, the Sprite that Hilary drinks from has the new logo from 2005 consisting of two yellow and green "halves" forming an "S" lemon/lime design. This logo had not yet been created during the implied times of these scenes.

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Quotes

Betty Anne Waters: I don't deserve a friend like you.
Abra Rice: You damn right, you don't!

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Connections

References The Mighty Mouse Playhouse (1955)

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Soundtracks

Heaven & Hell
Written by Angela McCluskey (as McCluskey) / Scott Roewe (as Roewe)
Performed by Wild Colonials
Licensed by Arrangement with St Bernadette Music (ASCAP) and Give A Wave Music (BMI)
Administered by Bug Music
Courtesy of DGC Records, Inc. by arrangement with Universal Music

User Reviews

The Best Courtroom Drama of the Twentieth-First Century

In Ayer, Massachusetts, the siblings Betty Anne and Kenneth 'Kenny' Waters are very close to each other and they are neglected by their single mother and prostitute Elizabeth Waters (Karen Young).

In their come of age, Kenny (Sam Rockwell) is a troublemaker with a baby daughter hated by the local police department and Betty Anne (Hilary Swank) gets married and has two sons. When their neighbor is stabbed to death, the police officer Nancy Taylor (Melissa Leo) that has hatred for Kenny, arrests him and he is sent to court for trial.

Kenny and Betty Anne can not afford to hire a lawyer and Kenny is defended by a public defender. He is sentenced to life without probation, based on the evidence of his blood type and the testimony of his girlfriends Brenda Marsh (Clea DuVall) and Roseanna Perry (Juliette Lewis).

When Kenny tries to commit suicide in prison, his sister tells him that she will complete her elementary school and high-school to go to law school to reopen his case and overturn his sentence.

"Conviction" is the best courtroom drama of the Twentieth-First Century. The inspiring story of a waitress that decides to study to become a lawyer to defend her beloved and innocent brother that was sentenced to life without probation and release him after twenty years is one of the most beautiful examples of dedication, determination, devotion and fraternal love.

The top-notch performances of Hilary Swank, Sam Rockwell and Juliette Lewis deserved nomination to the Oscar. The tragic and ironic fate of Kenny six months after his freedom is not mentioned in the film that stops the journey of the Waters family in the best moments of their lives. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "A Condenação" ("The Conviction")

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Switzerland UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 November 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

Betty Anne Waters

Filming Locations:

Michigan, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$12,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$102,351, 17 October 2010

Gross USA:

$6,783,129

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$11,104,555

Company Credits

Production Co:

Omega Entertainment, Longfellow Pictures, Oceana Media Finance

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1