“So far so good for sticking to the movie schedule. Back a few months ago, I earned a “”night at the movies”” coupon for AMC and somehow managed to get a free movie back then plus a set of certificates for freebies. The expiration date isnt until this coming January, so I’ve been kinda sitting on it for a while. Its annoying the whole having to wait until the second week to use a coupon, and I didnt wanna sit thru a movie at the Common that I coulda seen at the Fenway. Opportunity finally presented itself with Conviction, although I held onto the popcorn and soda coupons.
Reason for watching this: I heart Sam Rockwell. So much that I stalked him in NYC this past May. Yeah, that was kinda awesome. Main reason I heart him is because of his role in Choke, but the man can act, and he hasn’t betrayed my trust when it comes to his choice of movies. Therefore, I continue to follow him blindly. And yes, he delivered as expected in this film, even if something was kinda off about his aging.
I know this is all b-ass-ackwards from how I usually do my write ups, but I guess I’ll continue on the cast before I even get into a general overview. Mixing it up, y’know? I have mixed feelings on Hilary Swank. For some reason, the idea of her annoys me. But then I watch her performances and she’s fantastic. I think I just have it in my head that she’s overrated, what with the whole 2 for 2 streak at the Academy Awards and the inevitable buzz she gets for every new role she takes. But the truth of the matter is, she isnt actually overrated. She’s good. Conviction was no exception. She even had a tolerable Boston accent!
Continuing with the cast, actually loved Minnie Driver. She typically annoys me (especially for her part in that other Boston-area-set movie of hers) but I daresay she redeemed herself with this one. Tough as a nails with a heart. Pleasant surprise to see Bailee Madison, even if this role wasn’t nearly as meaty as what she had in Brothers. Juliet Lewis was also fantastic in a role where you both hated her because her character was not a nice person, but loved her for the quirks of her performance. The other pleasant surprise was Clea Duvall. Been a fan of hers since The Faculty, mostly because I could really related to her character Stokely (except for the whole “”we’re gonna prove she’s assimilated”” happy ending thing with her wearing lilac *gag*). Weird seeing her with long hair in the 80’s scenes.
Okay, so now that I’ve broken down the cast, what did I think about the film itself? I really liked it. I’ve said that a good sign of the enjoyability of a film is how long it takes me to check my watch for the first time. We made it over an hour. That’s rare. It really was such a compelling story, even if I knew how it was ultimately gonna play out. There was a bit of a drag about 2/3 of the way thru, but not significant enough to make me think any less of the film.
What really struck me was the relationship between the two main characters, in particular in the childhood flashback scenes. It really made me wish that I had a brother growing up, to the point where the scenes actually were getting a bit emotional for me. Yeah, being an only child kinda sucks sometimes.
Sooooo yeah, I kinda wonder if we’ll see this one hang around a bit during Oscar season, but the fact that it was released so early doesnt bode well. Its definitely over the top Oscar bait, but good nonetheless
Conviction – \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/