Best Laid Plans ***
rated R Fox Searchlight Pictures 90 minutes starring Alessandro Nivola, Reese Witherspoon, Josh Brolin, Rocky Carroll, Michael G. Hagerty, Terrence Dashon Howard, Jamie Marsh written by Ted Griffin directed by Mike Barker
Mike Barker's "Best Laid Plans" is an example of effective film noir. A dark subject matter, plenty of moral dilemmas, good dialogue, and stylish direction which makes for an entertaining, twisty 90-minute diversion.
Two buddies, Nick(Alessandro Nivola), who works at a recycling plant, and Bryce(Josh Brolin), a high-school teacher, are meeting for a few drinks at a local bar in Tropico(a small town in an unnamed state that looks like Nevada). Nick has been living in Tropico his entire life, and is depending on the inheritance which he will now receive, since his father has just died. Bryce is fortunate enough to be house-sitting for a wealthy family, and is looking forward to a bright future.
All that is changed when Nick gets a phone call from Bryce after midnight, asking him to come over to discuss a huge problem. A woman(Reese Witherspoon) whom he met at the bar, and then had sex with, accused him of rape. She also happens to be downstairs, tied up in rope and handcuffed. Bryce seems to be hazy about what exactly happened, but he knows that a rape charge would ruin his career and perhaps send him to prison.
Ted Griffin's script then flashes back three months, and although I am tempted to let you in on some of the twists that occur after the initial setup, I'm doing you a favor by letting you witness them on your own. However, if you aren't paying attention to certain moments, then some plot complications will fly over your head. It's called challenging cinema.
"Best Laid Plans" won't grab you in the way that "The Usual Suspects" does, but it is a fine homage to the way film noir used to be made; with multilayered characters, strong-willed women, and people who pretend to be something that they're not. "Best Laid Plans" is sometimes rough-around-the-edges, but being Mike Barker's first American film, it is quite an achievement.
Alessandro Nivola(Pollux Troy in "Face/Off") makes quite an impression as the good-natured guy who gets corrupted by money, and Reese "Is There Anyone Better" Witherspoon once again displays sheer talent in her role of the girl who displays her love through the things she'll do for her lover.
The look of "Best Laid Plans" reminds me of Paul Thomas Anderson's "Hard Eight", and Danny Cannon's "Phoenix", and the tone of these films is also similar. It's nice to see a well-made character-driven suspense-thriller, especially when it has a cast of young people. Nothing much goes awry in these "Best Laid Plans".
a review by Akiva Gottlieb, The Teenage Movie Critic akiva@excite.com http://teenagemoviecritic.8m.com this review is also featured at http://jump.to/moviepage
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