DEATH SENTENCE... Too stunned for clever tittleIt's at times like these that I miss smoking, because after the adrenaline rush I've just been through, in theory, it sounds like it would help... Aside from it's gory, realistic violence, I can not believe that I didn't know more about this movie until now. There are no words to describe the range of emotion I felt while on this two hour nightmarish journey (though I will of course try). On purpose I am going to be very vague about the plot in case you see the movie. When you do, you will know why I couldn't say much. Most outstanding is Kevin Bacon as Nick Hume, loving husband and father. He is no longer Kevin Bacon playing a part. He IS Nick Hume, average Joe
with a middle-class job with a fabulous wife and two lovely boys. Through the opening credits we watch home movies of the Hume family; the birth and growth of their children, their family celebrations, their close-knit all American normal family. As never before, after this fast introduction, I feel like I know the family and I like them. I feel them. 14 minutes into the movie the unthinkable happens and the family is left numb. I felt their pain. 18 minutes into the movie and the tears began. Then the adrenaline starts. Bacon is a crafty actor and you can see in his eyes what is going on in his head without saying a word. On the other side of the tracks we meet another family; not all American, not middle-class, most of all, not loving. Another big nod goes to John Goodman for playing the 
creepiest, smarmy bastard who is most realistic and scary. You will never think of him the same lovable way after seeing this movie. 54 minutes into the movie is the most suspenseful chase scene I have ever watched. The bad guys are gang members and they are very bad men. You will not like these boys/men. While Hume is being chased you think, this could actually happen. You feel how it would feel if it were you. We are on the run with him and just as terrified as to what to do next. I think I actually stopped breathing at that point. The movie darts back and forth between the emotional family life and the downward spiral that Hume finds himself on. While still trying to play it cool, back at the office a co-worker asks Hume how he is. His answer is quite telling. "Well, you don't really know what you'd do until it happens. Surprise yourself." Therein lies one of the themes of the movie. Just when you think that things are going to be okay, we get hit with another intense scene. My heart racing so fast I can hear it. Again, up on the roller coaster then down, but wait, the movie is still unfinished. The very bad men in the gang has to learn that retribution goes both ways. This could have been pushed too far, but Bacon kept Hume believable and realistic. He doesn't turn into some amazing action hero, he is still Hume, but placed in a very difficult spot. This is not an episode of MacGiver turning a paper clip into a machine gun. Up until the very end, he is still a loving husband and father. It is at the very end that we also learn that violence that begats violence never ends and nobody wins. There is no tidy way to just finish this movie. It's not as simple as turning off the TV. You keep playing and replaying things over and over. Yes, it is a violent film, but this is a violent world and I think when not living in that violent world we tend to forget it exists. This film stays with you, bothers you and leaves you wanting more answers or a different ending (but that would be a different movie). I can not speak more highly of a film that even so violent, is full of love and pain and the human condition. My heart aches.
with a middle-class job with a fabulous wife and two lovely boys. Through the opening credits we watch home movies of the Hume family; the birth and growth of their children, their family celebrations, their close-knit all American normal family. As never before, after this fast introduction, I feel like I know the family and I like them. I feel them. 14 minutes into the movie the unthinkable happens and the family is left numb. I felt their pain. 18 minutes into the movie and the tears began. Then the adrenaline starts. Bacon is a crafty actor and you can see in his eyes what is going on in his head without saying a word. On the other side of the tracks we meet another family; not all American, not middle-class, most of all, not loving. Another big nod goes to John Goodman for playing the 
creepiest, smarmy bastard who is most realistic and scary. You will never think of him the same lovable way after seeing this movie. 54 minutes into the movie is the most suspenseful chase scene I have ever watched. The bad guys are gang members and they are very bad men. You will not like these boys/men. While Hume is being chased you think, this could actually happen. You feel how it would feel if it were you. We are on the run with him and just as terrified as to what to do next. I think I actually stopped breathing at that point. The movie darts back and forth between the emotional family life and the downward spiral that Hume finds himself on. While still trying to play it cool, back at the office a co-worker asks Hume how he is. His answer is quite telling. "Well, you don't really know what you'd do until it happens. Surprise yourself." Therein lies one of the themes of the movie. Just when you think that things are going to be okay, we get hit with another intense scene. My heart racing so fast I can hear it. Again, up on the roller coaster then down, but wait, the movie is still unfinished. The very bad men in the gang has to learn that retribution goes both ways. This could have been pushed too far, but Bacon kept Hume believable and realistic. He doesn't turn into some amazing action hero, he is still Hume, but placed in a very difficult spot. This is not an episode of MacGiver turning a paper clip into a machine gun. Up until the very end, he is still a loving husband and father. It is at the very end that we also learn that violence that begats violence never ends and nobody wins. There is no tidy way to just finish this movie. It's not as simple as turning off the TV. You keep playing and replaying things over and over. Yes, it is a violent film, but this is a violent world and I think when not living in that violent world we tend to forget it exists. This film stays with you, bothers you and leaves you wanting more answers or a different ending (but that would be a different movie). I can not speak more highly of a film that even so violent, is full of love and pain and the human condition. My heart aches.BIG Pick: Exceptional film, well done from outstanding actors to director; most excellent. See for yourself... if you dare.
