The Trials of Cate McCall

For F*** Magazine

THE TRIALS OF CATE MCCALL 

Director : Karen Moncrieff

Cast : Kate Beckinsale, Nick Nolte, James Cromwell, David Lyons, Clancy Brown, Mark Pellegrino, Taye Diggs, Isaiah Washington, Dale Dickey, Kathy Baker

Genre : Drama

Opens : 19 June 2014

Rating : NC16 – Some Coarse Language / 93 mins

It’s a case of the almost-Danza with Kate as Cate. Beckinsale plays Cate McCall, a high-flying L.A. legal eagle whose promising career is threatened by alcoholism and a custody battle, ex-husband Josh (Lyons) planning on moving to Seattle with their young daughter Augie (Ava Kolker). Cate is assigned to defend Lacey Stubbs (Anissimova), a young woman put on death row who claims that she was wrongly accused of first degree murder. With her Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor Bridges (Nolte) by her side, Cate takes on what many deem an impossible case. Among the obstacles that stand in her way are possibly-crooked police detective Welch (Pellegrino), womanising judge Sumpter (Cromwell), a man she prosecuted and who was proven innocent and released from jail (Washington) plus the army of protestors camped outside the courthouse, convinced of Lacey’s guilt.

            The thought running through this reviewer’s mind for the duration of this film was “gee, this looks like it belongs on TV”. It turns out that The Trials of Cate McCall was not granted a U.S. or U.K. theatrical run, bypassing a video release and airing on the Lifetime Channel as a movie of the week, a death knell if ever there was one. As a courtroom drama, The Trials of Cate McCall is pretty much par for the course, offering nothing one wouldn’t find in any law procedural television show. The central mystery is moderately interesting rather than downright riveting; several plot developments questionable if not preposterous. More than a handful of artistic license is taken and law students will be crying “objection!” but for the layperson, it all makes just enough sense.

            In some circles, Kate Beckinsale is thought of as merely a pretty face and little else, but the truth is that she is a capable actress and makes for a believable lawyer here, somewhat reminiscent of her turn in the under-seen Nothing but the Truth. She projects confidence and brokenness equally well and makes the title character into someone the audience does very much want to see succeed. We see Cate dishevelled and crying but also taking control of the courtroom and it’s certainly not a bad performance from Beckinsale. Nick Nolte has pretty much been out of it for the last 20 years but still has gotten steady work as a dependable supporting player and, as his Academy Award nomination for Warrior proves, can still do good work. Not too much is required of him in The Trials of Cate McCall but he’s got the “gruff but kind” mentor figure thing down pat. James Cromwell makes full use of his hawkish mien as Justice Sumpter; he may be best remembered for playing a kindly farmer in Babe but prepare to throw up in your mouth a little when he pervs on Kate Beckinsale. Who’s the pig now?

            The Trials of Cate McCall features a capable Kate Beckinsale leading the charge but it really is nothing that hasn’t been done before, rote rather than sensational. The need for an emotional subplot involving Cate’s inability to connect with her young daughter is there to show how Cate struggles with her demanding job and with being a mother (hence the plural “trials” in the title), but it seems unnecessary at times. Writer-director Karen Moncrieff, like her lead actress, is competent, but every so often we get lines like “I’m f**king good at what I do and I intend to win this!” It’s bland, but not quite as ham-fisted a mess as it could’ve been.

Summary:  Kate Beckinsale is a strong lead and the supporting cast of somewhat-familiar faces backs her up well, but that’s not enough to pull this also-rans courtroom drama up from the doldrums.

RATING: 2.5 out of 5 Stars

Jedd Jong 

Homefront

For F*** Magazine

HOMEFRONT

Director: Gary Fleder
Cast:         Jason Statham, James Franco, Winona Ryder, Kate Bosworth, Rachelle Lefevre, Frank Grillo, Clancy Brown, Omar Miller, Izabela Vidovic
Genre: Action, Thriller
Run Time: 90 mins
Opens: 5 December 2013
Rating: M18 (Coarse Language, Violence and Sexual Scene)

When we were taught about the evils of drugs in school and all the horrible things narcotics can do to a person’s body, what didn’t receive as much attention in the classroom were the scary, scary people who manufacture and deal said narcotics. The recently-concluded television series Breaking Bad chronicled Walter White’s journey from regular high-school chemistry teacher to treacherous “cook”. In Homefront, Jason Statham comes face to face with some “cooks” of a slightly different variety.

Statham plays Phil Broker, an undercover DEA agent who gets embedded in a biker gang and orchestrates a violent drug bust, resulting in him becoming none too popular and having to lay low. Broker and his daughter Maddy (Vidovic) relocate to the sleepy town of Rayville, Louisiana. Maddy fights back when she’s bullied on the playground, riling the bully’s mother Cassie Bodine (Bosworth). This draws attention to mysterious new neighbour Broker, which isn’t good news as Cassie’s brother Gator (Franco) is a notorious meth kingpin who operates a meth lab with his girlfriend Sheryl (Ryder). Broker must act when the life he tried to escape returns to threaten him – and his daughter.

Homefront is directed by Gary Fleder, from a screenplay by Sylvester Stallone, based on Vietnam vet author Chuck Logan’s novel. The script, which Stallone had written with the intent of playing the lead in mind, sat on a shelf for a while until he selected Statham to replace him in front of the camera. It’s easy to forget that Stallone was nominated for an Oscar for writing Rocky, so he does have typewriter cred. The script is serviceable, not remarkable by any means, and the more tender moments between Broker and his daughter do come off feeling a little forced.

Cinematographer Theo van de Sande offers up some pretty images of Broker and Maddy on horseback and helps juxtapose the beauty of the idyllic bayou with the nastiness of the backwoods denizens who call it home. Throughout most of the film, Statham shows off his hand-to-hand combat skills and, while quick-cutting and shaky cam is employed during the fights, it isn’t overused to the point of nausea. The film’s conclusion is that of a generic action movie, replete with a car chase, shootouts and pyrotechnics, but it is decently-staged.

Statham has become known as an actor who pretty much plays the same guy in all of his films. While Homefront won’t be the movie he will be remembered for, it gives him a chance to do something a wee bit different – just not too different. Here, he’s more Papa Wolf than vengeful badass and it brings to mind Snitch from earlier this year, in which Dwayne Johnson tried something similar. Mostly though, Phil Broker is the standard-issue Statham tough guy. You might be thinking “What’s a Brit doing in the Bayou?” Fleder said of the decision to have Statham speak as he normally does, “I love the idea of (keeping) Jason's natural British accent because it made him more of an outsider. It made him more threatening as an exotic presence in this town." The tactic is pretty effective. Vidovic doesn’t quite stand out from the many other child actors who have played similar roles in action flicks, but she’s okay.

Franco has proven himself as an interesting actor, having dabbled in everything from writing to directing to creating art to giving guest lectures in addition to acting. He’s also proven he can play an entertaining psychopath and does make for an adequate villain here. He doesn’t go all out with the scenery-chewing and isn’t as terrifying as he could’ve been, but he’s good. Ryder plays against type, more white-trash chick than elegant goth girl, and Kate Bosworth looks threadbare as a redneck mama constantly on edge. Thing is, everyone’s teeth look way too good, given that the characters are meth users.



Homefront isn’t anything we haven’t seen before but it is sufficiently different from Statham’s regular “action flick of the week” output and we get to see him as both protective dad and kicker of ass. Is screenwriter Stallone’s Expendables co-star better in the role than the Italian Stallion himself would have been? It’s hard to say but it’s a casting choice that isn’t a horrible misfire.

SUMMARY: Homefront is conventional but sturdy and Jason Statham is a Papa Wolf any daughter would want beating up the drug dealers to protect her.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5 Stars

Jedd Jong