Because Ashley Judd is not returning my phone calls, I went to see her new movie High Crimes. In this suspense-thriller, Judd plays Claire Kubik, a San Francisco attorney happily married to husband Tom (Jim Caziel). She becomes less happy when Tom, whose real name is "Ron Chapman," is suddenly arrested by the FBI and charged with the murders of nine civilians who died during his service in the Special Forces in El Salvador in 1988. Judd's husband claims he is the victim of a military conspiracy, so she finds "wild-card" military attorney Charlie Grimes (Morgan Freeman) to help prove Ron/Tom's innocence.
Is Ron/Tom lying to his wife, or are the guys who follow Judd around for the rest of the movie out to kill her? Director Carl Franklin keeps the audience guessing, if only because his plot doesn't make any sense--the film's answers don't agree with the clues offered. Judd does well with her role, and the reliable Freeman gives a convincing and humorous portrayal of a recovering alcoholic. But their efforts are wasted in this misdirected who-dun-it--High Crimes simply fails to add up. So two final questions: How do scripts like this make it to theaters? And more important: Why won't she call back?
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