FamilyFans Movies

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FRACTURE (R)

Plot Summary: An assistant DA takes on what seems to be an open and shut murder case - and finds himself caught up in a game of wits with the shrewd murderer himself.

Reason for the Rating: Language and some violent content.

I have a few friends who like to multi-task when watching movies at home. They can’t sit on their couches idly viewing for two hours; they have to be doing something else as well. Whether it’s folding laundry, paying bills, or even surfing the web, a home movie is never simply enjoyed by these particular people. I’ve always thought this was so weird—I love movies, and I have never been able to imagine wanting to do something else while I watch.

The other day, for the first time, I experienced this phenomenon for the first time, and it wasn’t even in the comfort of my own home. I was in the theater, watching Fracture, and I found myself fighting the urge to open my purse and begin balancing my checkbook as I watched. After all these years of thinking my friends were crazy, I finally get it—and it’s all thanks to Fracture.

I don’t know if I’d call that a breakthrough.

I wasn’t that I didn’t like this movie. I did.  It had an interesting plot. The acting was great. The ending was unpredictable. Unfortunately, It just never quite captured my interest.

Fracture is the story of Willly Beachum (played by Ryan Gosling), an up-and-coming lawyer working in the District Attorney’s office in Los Angeles. Willy has worked hard to get where he is now, and he’s on his way to even better things. Through some clever—and not all together honest—tactics, he’s landed a job at one of the biggest law firms in LA. He’s got just two weeks left as an assistant DA, and then life in the fast lane will begin for him. But before he leaves, he’s given one more case. On its surface, the case seems to be open and shut. A man named Ted Crawford (played by Anthony Hopkins) has murdered his wife—a murder which the audience is shown in perhaps a bit too much detail—because she was having an affair. When the police arrive at the scene, Ted admits to killing her and even signs a confession when he is taken in to the police station. Plus, the police recover a gun from the scene of the crime. It’s a case nobody could lose, so Willy agrees to handle it before he moves on.

Unfortunately for Willy, some cases are not what they seem. It turns out that Ted is a lot smarter than he appears to be, and he takes special pleasure in mind games. Additionally, the gun found at the scene has never been fired, and the detective who heard Ted’s original confession and took his signed confession was the very same man who had been sleeping with Ted’s wife—talk about a conflict of interest! Suddenly, this case is wide open, and Ted seems to be taking unusual satisfaction in tormenting Willy. For some reason, this only makes Willy want to convict Ted even more, and before he knows it, his entire career is on the line. If he could only find the murder weapon, he could win, but somehow it’s Ted who seems to be controlling the whole thing.

Like I said, it’s an interesting plot. It’s just not captivating. I wanted Willy to succeed on some level, but it was hard for me to truly care about this young lawyer and to what level he moved up in the world. I was sorry that a women was murdered, but I wasn’t fired up about justice being served and putting the right man in jail.

Perhaps the best thing about the movie is that it deals with questions of integrity and what is worth sacrificing for success. Willy has the chance to save his career and put a guilty man in jail, but this chance requires some dishonest activity. He is faced with a choice—a classic question of whether the ends justify the means. This is a question that everybody has to deal with at some point, and I appreciated that the movie doesn’t take it lightly. Although the sexual themes and the violence depicted in the film are not appropriate for younger viewers, some mature teenagers may learn from Willy’s choices and their ramifications.

All in all, Fracture was a decent film, but I’d call it a “background movie.” It’s not a waste of time, and it even teaches some good lessons. Just make sure you have plenty of side projects ready to work on if you watch it—because you’ll probably get a lot of other things done!

FAMILYFANS RECOMMENDS:

Fracture is definitely what I would call a “renter.” It’s worth watching...but not necessarily in the theater.

AFTER THE SHOW: 

• Why do you think Willy wanted so badly to “move up” in the world? Is this a healthy desire?

• Which of Willy’s choices in the movie seemed to be good choices and which seemed like bad ones? Defend your choices.

• If you were Willy, would you have chosen to frame Ted—since you knew he was guilty—even if it were through dishonest measures?

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