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Friday, October 16, 2009

PhillyClout Reviews "Law Abiding Citizen"

City Hall looks great.

That’s probably the nicest thing we can say about “Law Abiding Citizen,” the Jamie Foxx-Gerard Butler revenge drama set in Philadelphia that hits theaters today. The movie captures the heft and majesty of the massive stone government building, from the top of Billy Penn’s hat, to the sweeping stair cases, to the ornate court rooms and elaborate City Council chambers.

During an action sequence when it looks like City Hall might suffer irrevocable harm, we actually tensed up.

Sadly, we never connected in the same way with any of the actual characters in “Citizen,” a laughable thriller directed by F. Gary Gray that features wooden performances from its two stars and suffers under the misguided belief that high tech gizmos can stand in for plotting and character development.

If you’ve seen the detailed trailer, you know the basic premise: Butler plays Clyde Shelton a man whose wife and daughter are killed by two thugs. He is then outraged when assistant District Attorney Nick Rice (played by a bland and emotionless Foxx) makes a plea deal with one of the deadly duo, thus sparing him from life in prison or the electric chair.

And so Butler, who has the ability to develop any number of high-tech death gadgets, exacts his revenge – ie, by killing most of the cast. He does some of this from within prison, playing cat and mouse games with Foxx and throwing out increasingly ridiculous one liners (“some lessons must be learned in blood,”) in a shaky American accent.

Meanwhile, Foxx – displaying none of his Oscar-winning acting skills – sleepwalks through most of the movie, suffering through a series of explosions, shootings, car bombs and boring conversations about right and wrong with Clyde, before emerging as the good guy in the end.

Mayor Nutter has a brief walk-on role and emerges unscathed. For his sake, we just hope enough folks in Hollywood see how great City Hall is in "Citizen" and come back here to make a better movie.

Posted by Catherine Lucey @ 11:17 AM  Permalink | Post a comment
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About The Philly Clout Team
PhillyClout
Chris Brennan, a native Philadelphian and graduate of Temple University, joined the Daily News in 1999. He has written about SEPTA, the Philadelphia School District, the legalization of casino gambling, state government, the mayor, the governor, City Council and political campaigns.
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David Gambacorta spent a small eternity writing about cops, drug dealers and serial killers. Now he’s writing about power and politics ­– which sometimes reminds him of the old crime beat. He joined the Daily News in 2005. And yes, he knows you’re not quite sure how to pronounce his last name. E-mail tips to gambacd@phillynews.com
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Catherine Lucey joined the Daily News in 2002 and has written about murderous drug gangs, political protesters and Harry Potter. After covering the 2007 mayoral election, she moved over to the City Hall bureau where she has been reporting on the Nutter administration.
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Jan Ransom, a native New Yorker, joined the Daily News in 2010 after graduating from Howard University. She has since written about the difficulty of filing police complaints, tax deadbeats and life after violent home invasions. She joined the Daily News City Hall Bureau in 2011 and has plunged headfirst into reporting on administration budget battles and City Council shenanigans.
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Share your tips

Catherine Lucey
luceyc@phillynews.com

Chris Brennan
brennac@phillynews.com

Jan Ransom
Ransomj@phillynews.com
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