The Next Three Days Review

• 9th May 2011

John Brennan (Russell Crowe) seems to have it all; beautiful wife Lara (Elizabeth Banks), adorable tousle-haired son, amazing sex life, lovely house, etc. But his perfect life is rudely shattered when his wife is arrested for the murder of her boss. Cut to a couple of years later. Lara is in prison, her relationship with her son pretty much non-existent, numerous appeals have come to nothing, the family are nearly broke and Lara is suicidal. John decides to take the only option left for him and bust her out of the big house…

A tip for would-be prison escapees – apparently serial prison escapees are pretty easy to find and hand out advice in coffee shops willy nilly and the only other thing you’ll need is Youtube. A remake of French thriller Anything For Her, The Next Three Days is directed by Paul Haggis, probably best known for his screenwriting work on Million Dollar Baby and Casino Royale.  The film’s plot is faintly ridiculous as John is aided by a series of happy coincidences and wrong assumptions by the rozzers (Lennie James and Jason Beghe). It’s a film of two halves; the first is spent with John planning (the obligatory big wall of maps, photos and post it notes is present and correct) and the second is the family racing to the airport to make their escape. Because of this, the pacing feels uneven and the strong lead performances aren’t quite enough to make up for it. There are some genuinely exciting moments though and an interesting twist as we realise that John’s plans aren’t as simple as we first thought.

What raises the film above the average thriller is Crowe’s performance. This isn’t like Taken (although Liam Neeson is in it) Crowe’s quiet academic doesn’t have a handy Special Forces background or underworld contacts. He throws up after a reconnaissance exercise goes wrong, gets the crap kicked out of him when trying to buy fake passports and has to be shown where the bullets go in the gun he’s just bought. Crowe projects just the right amount of naivety and desperation (as one crim says to him “You want this too much. You’re gonna fuck it up”).  The most powerful scene in the film has no words at all – John goes to tell his wife that her final appeal has been rejected and she knows straightaway from just the look in his eyes. It’s an important scene as it shows us what the story hinges on – the powerful, almost obsessive love that John feels for his wife, who may or may not be innocent. So much so, that he’s prepared to abandon his son if it means he can get her out. Elizabeth Banks also gives an excellent performance, injecting her character with a nice mixture of vulnerability and steel, so you’re never quite sure if she actually is capable of bashing someone’s head in with a fire extinguisher.

The Next Three Days is a solid suspense film, raised above mediocrity by Crowe’s solid and nuanced performance – worth a couple of hours of your time.

Extras include director’s commentary, four featurettes including a making of and deleted/extended scenes.

Emma Wilkin