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In most filmmakers' hands, The Next Three Days would just be a action thriller. But this is Paul Haggis we're talking about, and he's a serious director. He made Crash, which might be one of the worst best picture winners ever. There were so many lessons in that film it could have passed for an after school special. The Next Three Days tries to add substance to this genre picture, but ends up doing the same thing as Crash did: hitting us over the head with social lessons.
Russell Crowe plays John Brennan, whose wife has been in jail for three years for the murder of her boss. Claiming innocence, she's becoming suicidal. John, using the power of the internet and some shady characters, hatches a plan to break her out.
Yeah, it's as goofy as it sounds. And yet, in the right hands, could have been a lot of fun. Just look at last week's Unstoppable, which was goofy, but not taken anywhere near as seriously. It's too bad, because Haggis has some good actors to work with, and they all put in solid performances. But this is Haggis, and he just HAS to get his point across. There has to be deeper meaning, a message in all of this stupid madness. And that's where he gets things wrong. He should have just let us enjoy the craziness, instead of trying to teach us a lesson.
In most filmmakers' hands, The Next Three Days would just be a action thriller. But this is Paul Haggis we're talking about, and he's a serious director. He made Crash, which might be one of the worst best picture winners ever. There were so many lessons in that film it could have passed for an after school special. The Next Three Days tries to add substance to this genre picture, but ends up doing the same thing as Crash did: hitting us over the head with social lessons.