Review of The Life of David Gale (2003) by Dennis L — 31 Mar 2012

Death is a gift.

Classified as a thriller, and a crime drama, does it live up to the classifications or die before after it's too late?

The Story: David Gale, an outspoken activist against the death penalty is sentenced to death for the rape and murder of a colleague. It's a good narrative as he explains his side of the story to a jaded reporter with no sympathy for him. The film is fairly stylish, and the script is pretty strong, the only problem is that it moves so damned slowly. The first hour crawls and the second hour flies. The first half is meant to establish the character and gain viewer support, while the second half is meant to make you constantly second guess yourself. I have to admit though, it's a great way to convey the films message of how we're so quick to judge people.

The Cast: Kate Winslet, Kevin Spacey, Laura Linney... Kevin Spacey is David Gale, the man accused of murder and sentenced to death. You'll love him here, as you'll feel truly connected to him from start to finish. It's not his greatest role, but it's definitely something to write home about. Laura Linney is Constance Harraway, David Gales colleague and victim. She shows up from time to time, giving an undeniably great performance. Kate Winslet is Bitsey Bloom, the jaded reporter, hell bent on finding out what really happened. As usual she gives a strong performance, but can't quite live up to Spacey or Linney here.

One to Five Scale: 3.

The last 20 minutes or so is nothing but plot twists, but for some it might be too little too late. Sit through the first half and enjoy the second.

Tyler.