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30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"High Crimes" is Freeman and Judd's best work to date!!, April 9, 2002
If you liked Morgan Freeman's and Ashley Judd's performances from "Kiss the Girls" almost 5 years ago, then you'll love them again in "High Crimes", a suspenseful thriller of a movie directed by Carl Franklin ("Devil in a Blue Dress"). The suspense of "High Crimes" takes place inside and outside of the courtroom as well...and it never lets up for a minute! The film focuses on Claire Kubik (Judd), a high-powered attorney, and her husband Tom (Jim Caviezel, "The Count of Monte Cristo"), a successful contractor with his own business, who are madly in love and are planning to have a family. But a burglary at their home triggers a chain of events that shatters their world. The FBI agents arrest Tom. The charge: Under his real name, Ronald Chapman, Tom, as a covert military operative, murdered civilians in El Salvador and has been a fugitive for the past 15 years. Tom admits he is Ronald and he was part of a clandestine operation that did result in a massacre for which Tom was blamed. But he assures Claire of his innocence and that the real perpetrators made Tom their fall guy because he alone could identify them as the men who gave and executed the order. As she prepares her husband in a top-secret military court, Claire realizes she needs help from someone who knows these rules -- and is willing to break them. She enlists the aid of Charlie Grimes (Freeman), a former military attorney who relishes the opportunity to take on the very hierarchy that disgraced him years earlier. And the film goes on from there. "High Crimes" is simply one of the best legal thrillers ever made since "A Civil Action". This is Ashley Judd's best performance since "Kiss the Girls" and "Double Jeopardy" and Morgan Freeman's best performance since "Kiss the Girls" and "Chain Reaction"! With two of the best actors today, a top-notch supporting cast (including Caviezel, Amanda Peet, Tom Bower), and explosive action, "High Crimes" is a film not to be missed! A terrific DVD addition to your collection!
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22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A taut legal thriller, July 9, 2004
Joseph Finder's bestselling novel comes to life in this well-made, though somewhat predictable, thriller as a savvy and love-struck lawyer is pitted against the military and its covert actions. Ashley Judd plays Claire Kubik, a lawyer on the way to a partnership until her husband is arrested for a military crime he swears he didn't commit. To defend him, Claire must navigate military law and threats, getting in deeper and more dangerously with every half-truth she uncovers. The plot has fewer holes than most thrillers, although most viewers will see the "twist" a mile away. And that a law firm would jettison one of its promising stars because her husband was arrested is preposterous. Wouldn't they help in the defense? Still, given the holes in most thrillers these days, these lapses are minor. The acting is solid, with Judd creating a gutsy, smart woman who is capable of both unfaltering love and fury. Morgan Freeman does a fine job with his thin material as a once-alcoholic lawyer who is "a thorn in the military's side." James Caveziel, as Claire's husband, is less complex; his pleading got on my nerves by the end. Supporting roles by Amanda Peet (Claire's floozy sister) and Adam Smith (a young military lawyer) are adequate, though not highly memorable. The strength of this film is in the pacing and the seamless way in which it unfolds. The issues it raises about the United States's involvement in El Salvador provide an interesting, though not fully developed, frame. Highly enjoyable, though not perfect, this film is a good way to spend two hours with a bowl of popcorn at hand.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fast Paced And Well Acted, August 28, 2002
"High Crimes" is based on a book of the same name by Joseph Finder, and is so frequently the case, the book is better than the movie. Which isn't to say that this is a bad movie; in fact, it is a very good one. In today's world, fascinated with trials and the legal system, the emphasis on courtroom events is to be expected, but as a retired lawyer with 30 years in the Courts, I find this aspect a bit ho-hum. But the underlying plot of a military atrocity being possibly covered up by the court martial of a scapegoat NCO is effectively rendered here. Ashley Judd, who I view as a B- level actress does a commendable job as the lawyer wife of the accused ex-soldier. Morgan Freeman, who I rank as an A- actor, and a favorite of mine, is excellent as the alchoholic ex-military lawyer who tries to help defend the accused, played very well by Jim Caviezel.It is a fast paced flic with a surprise twist ending that is a good effort and an enjoyable movie.
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