Review of Primal Fear (1996) by Cale R — 13 Jan 2011
Primal Fear, at is very core, is a cliche. Moreover, it's built on cliches. I mean, a high-profile murder case? A tense courtroom drama? A twist ending? A timely second-act things-are-looking-grim sequence? Mozart's "Requiem" playing during the murder scene? Get real.
The only thing holding this rickety house of cards together is a brilliant, luminous debut performance from a very young and very earnest Edward Norton. It ranks among his best, as he transcends dialogue that can sometimes be pretty miserable, and really fleshes out a character picked straight out of a shortlist of stereotype psychos.
Props to him, as usual, but you're better off checking out his other stuff, rather than sit through this thing.
This review of Primal Fear (1996) was written by Cale R on 13 Jan 2011.
Primal Fear has generally received positive reviews.
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