The Next Three Days

Wrongly accused of a brutal murder, Lara Brennan (Elizabeth Banks), mother of one and wife to husband John (Russell Crowe) is sentenced to life in prison. Not one to sit back and accept the fate of raising their son alone and done attempting the appeals process, John, a college professor, begins to research how to break his wife out of prison. With tips from an expert on the subject, the enigmatic Damon Pennington (Liam Neeson), John finds himself in race against time to plan the perfect heist, but will he have what it takes make the final leap? Tension, suspense, and action from start to finish, this latest offering from writer/director Paul Haggis is pretty much guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat. Granted, the concept of a prison break and making the perfect getaway isn’t new material, but there’s certainly lots of room to explore the possibilities, especially considering the post 9/11 world we live in and Haggis manages to examine a number of those possibilities. Meanwhile, in the acting department, Crowe and Banks both hold their ground and shift through their emotions convincingly. Still, for all it has to offer, the film could still stand to lose about 20 minutes as it feels just a little too long. Worth a matinee or a rental, The Next Three Days is rated PG-13.