Writer-director Lurie makes dramas that whole-headedly engage ethical quandaries yet dodge easy judgments.
Flick Filosopher
May 05, 2009
It's hard to put a finger on anything actually wrong with this earnest drama of politics, conscience, and democratic ideals... but it's equally difficult to embrace it enthusiastically, too.
Every once in a while, for reasons as random as a Hollywood executive's taste or an economic meltdown, a perfectly decent movie slips through the cracks, never receives a theatrical release and is relegated to the purgatory called straight-to-DVD.
Should find favor with audiences eager for movies driven by characterization, ideas and the performances of actors whose screen presence offers as much justification for the existence of cinema as any camera trick, flashy montage or special effect.
While it won't change the world it certainly deserves to be seen, especially as this is probably Beckinsale's strongest dramatic performance in several years.
I thought the performances were great, particularly Vera Farmiga.
Christian Science Monitor
December 19, 2008
All this plays out in brisk fashion, and the actors, who also include Alan Alda as Rachel's venerable lawyer, mostly seem to be having a high old time.
Proving she can switch the lights on (or at least be guided to them), Kate Beckinsale gives a career-best performance in Rod Lurie's star-studded, substantive rumination on First Amendment attacks and governmental accountability.
