Product Details

• Actors: Ben Affleck, Samuel L. Jackson, Kim Staunton, Toni Collette, Sydney Pollack
• Directors: Roger Michell
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Paramount
• VHS Release Date: January 7, 2003
• Run Time: 98 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (155 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000069I3Y
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #26,828 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Impeccably crafted and smarter than your average thriller, Changing Lanes proves that revenge is a dish best served cold. A high-powered attorney (Ben Affleck) learns that lesson the hard way after he flees the scene of an accident involving an insurance salesman (Samuel L. Jackson) who holds a powerful advantage in his retaliatory strike against the lawyer's arrogant behavior. Affleck has everything to gain if he can retrieve a lost document from Jackson, who has everything to lose (wife, family, savings) when threatened with financial sabotage. To his versatile credit, Notting Hill director Roger Michell never plays the race card in this escalating battle of wills, focusing instead on the percolating resentments of men at opposite ends of the economic scale. As he did in Eyes Wide Shut, actor-director Sydney Pollack chillingly embodies the venal elite in a pivotal supporting role, and Changing Lanes potently illustrates the wisdom of heeding a guilty conscience. --Jeff Shannon

From The New Yorker
A young corporate lawyer (Ben Affleck) and a troubled father who works as an insurance salesman (Samuel L. Jackson) get into a minor collision on the F.D.R. Drive, and instead of just letting the damn thing go, they spend the rest of the day tormenting each other. The plot, with its matched, escalating acts of revenge, may be a contrivance, but the movie plays earnestly and well. The real subject of "Changing Lanes" is not revenge, but the malevolence inherent in a competitive society that occasionally breaks through the surface, leaving anyone who takes part feeling ridiculous and bewildered. The camera is too active, and the editing strategies too unsettled, but much of the writing (by Chap Taylor and Michael Tolkin) is either affecting or gratifyingly nasty. The final surprise: Ben Affleck grows up and gives the first good performance of his life. With Sydney Pollack, Kim Staunton, and Amanda Peet. Directed by Roger Michell. -David Denby
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Most Underrated Movies in Years, July 5, 2007

By	Kasey Driscoll - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Changing Lanes (DVD)

South African director Roger Michell directs this hit suspense thriller starring Ben Affleck and Samuel L. Jackson. Michell is actually very skilled and has a tremendous amount of mainstream appeal. He also directed last years Venus, which was another solid film albeit very different from Changing Lanes. Ben Affleck plays Gavin, a successful Wall Street attorney who must file a power of appointment for his company, which is run by his father-in-law played by Sydney Pollack. The document will sign a company over to his law firm and that company is owned by a dying man. Ethical questions certainly surround the document and as things unfold we find out even more. Doyle is played by Samuel L. Jackson, he is an insurance salesman and a recovering alcoholic who wants badly to restore his family before his wife takes his children away to the west coast. We get the feeling that Doyle is a wounded man and his actions are unacceptable at times. Actually both characters are deeply flawed and that is what makes their collision so engaging.

On his way to court to file this crucial document, Gavin gets into a car accident with Doyle. He doesn't prioritize the accident and instead must leave the scene to make it to court on time. Doyle's car will not drive and he is in the middle of a highway median when Gavin takes off in a rush. It of course begins to rain. Doyle himself was on his way to court and when he eventually gets there he finds out that he is too late. His goal was to surprise his wife with a mortgage loan he just received so his family would stay. He was attempting to get some resolution to whatever chaos he may have caused his family before this movie begins. Unfortunately for Gavin the power of appointment was left at the scene of the accident and is in Doyle's possession. Doyle, sour for being left in the rain on the highway and missing his chance in court, refuses to give Gavin the document. Needless to say they both have reasonable vendettas against one another and the battle they have escalates throughout as the film goes forward. These two men are basically dehumanized to one another and it doesn't help matters that they both come from entirely different worlds. They are opposites in life, so they are fundamentally opposed to one another when the first sign of conflict surfaces. It turns out that Changing Lanes evolves into a unique commentary on the darkest sides of human nature. It is unique because we visit these dark decisions by way of likeable and real character portrayals. To avoid spoilers, I won't reveal anymore than I have already.

Samuel L. Jackson is obviously an outstanding actor and he is great here but the most surprising thing is Ben Affleck matches him and then some. It's a shame Ben's reputation as an actor was so horrible at the time Changing Lanes came out because his performance definitely deserved some praise. Sydney Pollack is also outstanding as an exceptionally believable and accessible villain. A lot of the credit goes to the screenplay here for exposing pragmatic reactions to specific circumstances instead of superficial morality. There are no purely ethical and moral figures in Changing Lanes, but then again I can't think of too many in real life either. If they did exist in Changing Lanes then its commentary would be disrupted completely, but I still held out hoping reason would creek into the picture. Chaos reigns here and humanity is called upon to prevail. It puts suspense on a much larger societal scale for me. I know that the ending bothered those hoping for something more retributive but try to see Changing Lanes as a story about healing, not revenge.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent movie with an excellent plot, June 21, 2005

By	hi - See all my reviews

This review is from: Changing Lanes (DVD)

This movie has got to be one of my favorite movies by far because it's different. It's unique, it's just different from other movies and should be put in a different gnere for that reason even though it's a drama movie. Ben Affleck plays an attorney while Samuel L. Jackson (one of the best actors!!!) plays a car salesman. When there is a car accident between the two, the attorney leaves the scene because he has to be in court. But the car salesman also needed to be in court so that he can get joint custody of his children. But, his car doesn't work now, and he loses custody of his children. In the meantime, the attorney is missing important paperwork which he accidentally left at the accident and the salesman now posseses and refuses to give back. The two then engage in a "war". But, the protagonist clearly is the salesman as you feel terribly for him after what the attorney does to him. The movie is sad and tragic with an amazing performance by Jackson and I shall always remember it for it's unique plot and amazing delivery. Highly reccomended.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A superb thriller and character study., September 10, 2002

By	Eric - See all my reviews

This review is from: Changing Lanes (DVD)

Changing Lanes happens to feature two movie stars in the lead roles and is funded by Paramount Pictures, one of the top film production studios. So is it with anything less than pure surprise that this doesn't turn out to be an action or buddy picture? Not only does this film happen to be a character-driven thriller, it's also an intriguing look at societal pressures on the human individual, delivering in a manner that is intense, edgy, and perhaps even quite frightening.

Ben Affleck stars as Gavin Banek and Samuel L. Jackson is Doyle Gipson. Banek is a high-priced lawyer who is ready to finalize a big deal with will turn over a recently deceased millionaire's entire fortune to his firm. Gipson is a recovering alcoholic who's doing everything he can (mainly by purchasing a house in Queens for them to settle in) to save his marriage and keep his wife from taking the children and moving to another state. Both Banek and Gipson are on their way to court when their cars crash into each other.

Gipson wants to get everything done legally, "the right way," but Banek is in too much of a hurry, so he simply leaves a blank check and takes off to court, leaving the other man stranded. However, Banek leaves the most important file at the scene of the accident (which Gipson is now in possession of), and Gipson misses his own court hearing, losing any chance for custody of his kids to his wife. Banek's determination to get the file back and Gipson's anger and frustration turns this cross of paths into a game of cat-and-mouse and revenge which makes for probably the most lopsided day of their lives.

Changing Lanes is a film that surprised me almost every minute of the way. There's a lot of plot and theme at work here, but I want to emphasize that this is hardly pretentious filmmaking; it's an honest look at just how far pressure can push normal men, as well as how such pressure can bring out the best qualities in these same people. After a rather clumsy introduction and a chaotically directed crash scene that felt rather rushed, the film settled in comfortably into its main story. On the surface, the movie plays perfectly well as a thriller, certainly enough to satisfy thriller buffs looking for hard-edged suspense.

But further yet, the film becomes a character study of two men who lead opposite lives, but perhaps aren't as dissimilar as each may think. Rich and affluent, Affleck's Banek is a man on the top, but despite his seemingly arrogant and impatient behavior, he displays a moral and conflicted center, torn by what's right and what everyone else-namely his boss, co-workers, wife-says is right. Undoubtedly the most complex character Affleck has ever played, this is also the young actor's best performance to date.

Samuel L. Jackson is easily one of the best actors around, and his portrayal here is absolutely terrific, perhaps his most substantial performance since his role in Pulp Fiction. Gipson is certainly less priveleged than Banek, and this societal gap displays an interesting effect once things get out of hand. Gipson represents the majority of us, the working middle class that's frustrated when fate hands him a wrong turn. The disastrous day that Gipson endures is affecting, and it's both simultaneously crushing and exhilarating to see a reasonable man go to the extremes.

There are far more themes at work here, and I've only touched on the surface. For instance, there's a powerful scene where Amanda Peet (as Banek's wife) delivers a coldly manipulative speech that clues us in as to why Banek would cheat on his beautiful wife with a less physically attractive, but far kinder, more emotionally supportive woman (played well by Toni Collete). Another similarly powerhouse sequence is Sydney Pollack's (playing Banek's boss) diatribe on ethics in business and why the cutthroat method is the only effective tool for pressing business matters. With an abundance of moments like these, there's so much theme at work in the script that the film simply demands repeat viewings.

Changing Lanes is always entertaining, thanks to Roger Mitchell's well-paced and sure-handed direction, and the script never falters when it comes to both story and thematic material, mixing both together without ever coming off as preachy. The film has lots to offer, and for viewers willing to take the ride, the rewards are plentiful. It's been a fine year for movies so far, and without a doubt, Changing Lanes is one of the best cinematic offerings to date.