Word: filmã
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...story chronicles a battle of wits between Clyde Shelton (Butler) and Philadelphia lawyer Nick Rice (Foxx). A decade prior to the film??s setting, two thugs murdered Clyde’s wife and young daughter during a home invasion. In the ensuing trial, Nick cut a deal with one of the murderers in order to secure testimony against the other. Clyde was understandably opposed to Nick’s plan, so he spent the next 10 years plotting his revenge on not just the two men who murdered his family, but also on members of the justice system...
Intriguing mystery lies at the foundation of the film??s story, but the way it actually plays out is unimaginative and amateurish. Midway through the film, it is revealed that Clyde used to work for the government, devising killing methods that worked automatically, with no need for human interaction. This explains how he knows what particular species of pufferfish carries the poison he needs or the intricacies of rigging a cellphone to explode as soon as it is answered. What a remarkably convenient explanation for his inexplicable homicidal ability! The later revelation of who is actually helping Clyde...
...film??s most egregious problems is that it puts no emphasis whatsoever on establishing any semblance of Clyde’s backstory, nor can it decide which of the two main characters it wants to agree with. As hard as it tries to legitimize Clyde’s motivation by constantly referencing his family, their brief appearance on screen does not do enough to explain any of his actions. Other details of the movie are similarly disconnected. Why doesn’t anyone notice the military-grade rocket launcher Clyde has erected in the middle of a cemetery...
...Abiding Citizen” are enjoyable, but for entirely different reasons than were intended. There are some inventive methods of killing people and a couple of big explosions in an attempt to sustain excitement, but these fail to distract from the movie’s fatal flaws. Toward the film??s end, Clyde looks up at Nick with a smirk on his face and says, “It’s gonna be biblical.” Indeed, “Law Abiding Citizen” fails in a way that can only be called epic...
...Klapisch didn’t set the entire film in Cameroon; perhaps it would have had the substance and originality that “Paris” strives for but doesn’t achieve. Klapisch still proves himself a master at directing awkward interactions, and some of the film??s best acted and most affecting moments come at the expense of characters that have just said too much or too little. About halfway through the film, there is a delightful, computer-animated dream sequence that seems to herald a more imaginative turn. This is followed by several...