Movie Title: True Crime

Movie Title: True Crime
Rating: 9
Reviewed By: Michael Stevens

Review:

Clint is back, and looking even older as he tries to pick up on the young women he works with in his latest big screen venture, True Crime. Now this is a not so serious attempt to start the review of a film with a rather serious theme, capital punishment. Hello and welcome back to the Out & About Movie Review with Mr. Mike Stevens. This time around we have the death defying thriller True Crime, directed by the old cowboy Clint Eastwood. Keep in mind that the last time he did this he won a truckload of awards for Unforgiven. I'm not saying he will repeat that feat, but this is a real good movie that deserves at least a few nominations for the major awards next time around. The main drawback to the film is that it can be taken as having a political agenda. You see the overall message of the film is against capital punishment, and not for the argument that it is cruel or that it doesn't serve as a deterrent to murder, but for the simple fact that you might execute an innocent man. The story, from an Andrew Klavan novel, is about a black man named Frank Beachum, played by Isaiah Washington, who is on death row in California for killing a white convenience store clerk. Clint plays a reporter for the Oakland Tribune who has to fill in for a reporter who died, and must now interview the soon to be dead Frank. As a side story Clint's character Steve Everett is busy sleeping with his editor's wife Patricia Findley. Mr. Findley is played by Denis Leary, who now is just looking for an excuse for firing Steve. Leary's character just wants a short human-interest story on how it feels to be awaiting death just hours before the 'procedure' from his reporter, but it's just not to be. Clint's character doesn't think everything adds up and is now on a mission to keep Frank from being executed just after midnight. Now while he is doing this he also has to take his daughter to the zoo and try to keep his marriage together as he promises yet again not to have affairs, all in a day. True Crime has some great acting, some real good humor (the scene with Eastwood, Leary, and James Woods in Woods' office is hysterical), suspense, and a bit of a political message. All of this add up to a real good film, though I disagree with having a political message. Also it is very apparent that Clint has NOT had any plastic surgery. Others in this rated R film are Lisa Gay Hamilton as the death row inmate's wife Bonnie, Bernard Hill, Diane Venora, Michael Jeter, Mary McCormack, Michael McKean as the reverend, and finally Francesca Ruth Eastwood as Kate Everett, Clint's real kid playing his movie daughter. As for the Out & About Rating for True Crime, I give it nine couches out of the standard ten. For the Out & About Movie Review this has been Mike Stevens reporting from the dusty old couch (not really).