{"id":7709,"date":"2019-08-09T09:43:47","date_gmt":"2019-08-09T13:43:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyfilmfix.com\/?p=7709"},"modified":"2019-08-09T09:43:48","modified_gmt":"2019-08-09T13:43:48","slug":"review-brian-banks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyfilmfix.com\/?p=7709","title":{"rendered":"Review: BRIAN BANKS"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Portrait of an innocent man is heavy-handed and rushed but still rings true.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

You can\u2019t make this up. A 16-year-old high school football star named Brian Banks, who is being already scouted by big college programs, is falsely accused of rape and kidnapping. Naturally, the arrest and prosecution ends his career goals. But then, years later, something magical happens, and the truth sets him free.

\u201cBrian Banks\u201d is the incredible true story of a great injustice. And the fault goes all around. While the factual record is even more compelling than the movie, the film gets a lot of the notes right. Critical to this working is the central performance by Aldis Hodge, who brings Banks\u2019 frustration and despair to life. Hodge keeps it together here, never overplaying his character, when it would be easy to do so.

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Aldis Hodge as Brian Banks.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Director Tom Shadyac, with his first narrative feature since 2007\u2019s \u201cBruce Almighty,\u201d acts as a steady hand to what, at times, feels very much like a cable television project. Regardless, it moved me, and that\u2019s because it really happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The message here is clear: never give up, always fight for what is real, what is true (a word repeated throughout this review intentionally). Facing serious charges, Brian made a life-altering (potentially ending) decision to plea guilty as an adult. And even though he had already been in jail for a year (having been unable to make the $1 million bail), the judge ordered him to do another 5, followed by years of parole (or probation), and he\u2019d have to register as a sex offender and wear an ankle monitor. Had he truly been guilty, this sentence would have been warranted, but in Brian\u2019s case, it was a terrible tragedy.

The film covers a lot of ground. This is the problem. Spreading out the story through flashbacks the emotional strength of Brian\u2019s harrowing ordeal is undercut. And while the focus of the film is rightfully on Brian, the lawyer, Justin Brooks (Greg Kinnear), who eventually assists him is also worthy of standalone treatment. We learn over the closing credits that Brian\u2019s story is just one of many.

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Greg Kinnear is typically solid as crusading lawyer Justin Brooks.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Interestingly, an uncredited Morgan Freeman appears in flashbacks as a man who helped to educate Brian while in prison. Seeing Freeman in this fatherly or grandfatherly role is understandable and reminiscent of his work in \u201cThe Shawshank Redemption.\u201d \u201cBrian Banks\u201d is a small production, and Freeman\u2019s involvement is likely one that was done out of a commitment to the subject matter. But his character, like that of the lawyer Brooks, could have been a film all to itself.

I encourage viewers to do their own research after watching \u201cBrian Banks.\u201d Watch this 60 Minutes segment, for example:

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n