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 Rated: R
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Ruffalo, Jennifer Connelly, Mira Sorvino, Elle Fanning
Directed by: Terry George
Joaquin Phoenix shows up at the box-office again, this time giving one of his best performances ever in Reservation Road, a crime thriller with a message. Although the acting all around is above par, the story is weak with several inconceivable coincidences. To receive the most out of the film, mature adults should view it in the position of "I wonder if this happened to me, what would I do?”
On a dark night after a baseball game, Dwight
(Ruffalo) rushes in his SUV to get his son Lucas (Alderson) to his ex-wife’s (Sorvino) home—and it's past her curfew limit.
Coming up to a curve on Reservation road, Dwight gets disoriented when
an oncoming car with bright headlights swerves into his lane, temporarily
blinding him. At that same instant, a
10 year-old boy standing alongside the road, becomes an obstacle in his
path.
Dwight unavoidably hits the boy,
killing him instantly. In shock, with no witnesses, and distraught, Dwight chooses to
drive away from the scene making it a crime of manslaughter. This sets up a story of guilt, deception and
despair, as well as a father's (Phoenix) determination to catch the killer.
Although
the script has good intentions, several coincidences in the film make it hard
to accept. The script writer expects the
audience to accept that not only is Dwight from the same town, but his ex-wife lives
very close to the dead child’s family.
In addition, the dead child’s sister takes piano lessons from Dwight’s
ex-wife. Add to this that Dwight is a
lawyer for a local firm and gets chosen by the dead boy’s father to help find
the hit-and-run killer.
Reservation Road is an
important film, however. The subject
matter is timely and disturbing with statistics, like 974 dead due to
hit-and-run accidents in 2005, an increase of 20 percent since the year 2000.
This film
brings to light the difficulties in finding the perpetrators, the devastation
of loved ones and the consequences suffered from lack of judgment on the part
of the driver.
FINAL
ANALYSIS: Joaquin Phoenix gives a great performance as the dead boy's distraught
father, but this doesn’t save the plot, filled with unbelievable
coincidences. Contains some very
disturbing arguments and confrontations with rough language.
Yea, I wasn't that impressed by the story. It was all too convenient. |
