For those of us with a macabre taste for the thriller genre, vengeance plots hit the spot! Viewers often wonder, what if a loved one were brutally attacked and the law could do nothing about it? Would I seek my own brand of justice? OK, you've got the basic premise of the film.
But there's a twist. A secret group of justice seekers go around town finding guys who dream of revenge and do the job for them. Never the spoiler, I'll only say that the hero finds himself sort of consenting, with the emphasis on SORT Of, to let the splinter group do his dirty work for him. But there's a price to pay!
OK, no more on the plot!
Let me say that the actors are great. Nicholas Cage has never been a favorite of mine, but he steps up and delivers a fine performance as the guy who's wrapped up in something beyond his control. Guy Pearce is wonderful as a bad dude, with snide looks and sly smiles that make him truly evil. January Jones, stunning as usual, is a far cry from her nasty self in Mad Men. She plays the victimized wife with skill and tact.
Final thought: If groups of vigilantes were allowed to mete out justice as they saw fit, they'd no doubt bypass the expensive and often flawed legal system and sometimes get it right. But vengeance films wisely point out that splinter groups develop into cults, with their own brand of despotism. Laws protect us from the baddies...and from those who would take justice into their own hands.
If you see this flick, you'll be thinking about justice and the American Way well after the film is over.
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