HIGH CRIMES
20^th Century Fox / 2002 / 115 mins / PG-13
Blu-ray Release Date 9-8-09
Reviewed on 9-3-09

Given the glut of courtroom thrillers spawned after the near classic performance of Jack Nicholson in ‘A Few Good Men’, the 2002 Ashley Judd/Morgan Freeman vehicle could have been aptly titled, ‘A Few More Good Men’.   Judd stars as Claire Kubik, a sexy attorney whose perfect world suddenly comes crashing down around her when the FBI charges her husband (played by ‘Passion of the Christ’ star Jim Caviezel) with the murder of innocent civilians during a covert army operation fifteen years earlier. As Claire fights to prove her husband’s innocence, she finds herself in the midst of a government conspiracy that could cost her career—and life.  But for the home viewer, this Blu-ray will only set you back you $29.99.

HIGH CRIMES on September 8^th, 2009 for the first time!

When done correctly, courtroom dramas can be a nail biting adventure.  Al Pacino’s speech at the end of “And Justice for All”, Paul Newman’s performances in “The Verdict” or even Alec Baldwin scene chewing delight in ‘Malice’ continue to leave an indelible mark in movie memories.  Sadly, ‘High Crimes’ though engaging at times with standard performances by Judd, Freeman and Caviezel, lacks the punch one might expect in a finely tuned courtroom thriller.

Since audiences are familiar with the genre, they’re waiting for ‘Oh, my God’ moment.  But with Carl Franklin’s (Devil in a Blue Dress) lackluster direction, all he seems to give us is the ‘Oh, here it comes’ moment.

Coming off her successful films like ‘Time to Kill’, ‘Kiss the Girls’ and ‘Double Jeopardy’, ‘High Crimes’ probably seemed like a no-brainer.   But with few giant surprises, this script probably should have ended on a pile over at Lifetime rather than a feature film.

So... is this medium grade melodrama worth the thirty bucks or is the jury deadlocked?

That depends on your love of the genre and fan of the players.

High Crimes does have its moments and lead Ashley Judd is so appealing, you have to wonder why she’s fallen off Hollywood’s radar.  If you were a fan Kiss the Girls, this affable re-teaming of Judd and Freeman is a must have.  For the rest of us, however—High Crimes is an entertaining two hours, probably best saved as a rental than a permanent addition to your Blu-ray collection.

VIDEO
The 1080p, 2.35:1 aspect using the AVC codec.  Some of the scenes appear to be grainy, particularly some tried-and-true stock shots but like the style of the film, the quality is serviceable but not outstanding.

AUDIO
Thankfully, the DTS-HD Master has the dialogue placed in the center channel with the music score (by Graeme Revell) focused primarily through the front soundstage.  Aside from one outstanding surprise auto accident, not much else is audibly utilized to give your Blu-ray player a work out to play in surround sound.

EXTRAS
Given director Carl Franklin’s lengthy audio commentary, not much is learned from specifically, though he does take the opportunity to talk about some of his other movies and various philosophies when it comes to directing—which might have been more interesting if the movie turned out a little more memorable.  But for the ardent fan or aspiring armchair director, Franklin does offer some interesting insights into his craft.

“A Military Mystery” a curious foray into the mind of the  author of the original novel, Joe Finder, discussing his views on the adaptation of his book for the screen.

“FBI Takedown in Union Square” features behind-the-scenes shots of the staging and shooting of the arrest sequence of Judd and Caviezel early in the movie.  “A Different Kind of Justice” features real-life attorney Alice Cate discussing the similarities and differences between civil and military courts.  “Liar, Liar” provides an insight into the polygraph testing by expert Sue Coulette. My favorite addition includes “The Car Crash” which features fascinating storyboards and behind-the-scenes footage shooting the actors and stunt people involved in the crash sequence in the movie.  “Together Again” provides a workable reunion between the director, the producers and the supporting cast discussing working with Ashley Judd and Morgan Freeman along with the actors themselves discussing their obvious on-screen chemistry.

My Say
For the ardent courtroom drama fan, High Crimes will make an honorable, yet non-standout Blu-ray selection.  Although audio and video quality is above average, nothing else about this movie will give the viewer a reason to watch it more than once.  It’s not so much that High Crimes is a bad movie—by any stretch—instead, its only crime is the stiff competition whose shadow in which it has to live.