If you have read anything else on this site, you'll notice myself and Diomedes are big fans of Gladiator. Going along with that, we are also fans of Maximus himself Russell Crowe. I tend to get pretty pumped for Russell Crowe movies and he makes pretty good choices. I have enjoyed many of his post Gladiator films including American Gangster, Cinderella Man, and 3:10 to Yuma. However Russell has disappointed me with Master and Commander, A Good Year, and recently....The Next Three Days. The film is a run of the mill thriller without many thrills. The plot follows a man whose wife is convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. The husband (Crowe) never believes that she is guilty and starts planning to have her broken out of jail once all his appeals are denied. The story of the everyman attempting the impossible is an interesting premise, and the film is filled with cameos from other stars like Liam Neeson, Daniel Stern, Olivia Wilde, Brian Dennehy, and Rza. However the film also is very boring, and there is practically no tension until the breakout starts. Crowe's wife is played by the normally comedic Elizabeth Banks, and while she is effective in this role, her character is also not likable and as a viewer I was happy she was in prison. The film does not divulge whether or not she actually killed the person until the very end and to be honest I would have rather not known. I thought one of the cool features was wondering if Crowe's character was doing the right thing or if he was springing a murderer from prison. The film is not unwatchable and during the last act of the film there is a lot of suspense, however its not enough to save it from the weak first two acts. I give the film 4 Ninja Stars out of 10.
-Maximus
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