True Crime [Blu-ray]

Director: Clint Eastwood, Pat Verducci Clint Eastwood

Overview

Investigative reporter Steve Everett (Clint Eastwood) has just relocated to the west coast after getting fired from the New York Times. Thanks to his old friend, Alan Mann (James Woods), the editor-in-chief of The Oakland Tribune, Everett still has a job, but that's hardly the end of his problems. An alcoholic and a womanizer, he's been sober for two months and his marriage to Barbara (Diane Venora) is in as bad a shape as his car. Everett has also earned the hatred of city editor Bob Findley (Denis Leary), and not without reason -- Everett has been sleeping with his wife. One day, when another reporter dies in an automobile accident, Findley asks Everett to take over her assignment -- the final interview of condemned murderer Frank Beachum (Isaiah Washington). Everett researches the case before the interview, and finds Beachum was convicted of a robbery and homicide in an Oakland convenience store. But the reporter finds several discrepancies in the story, and a visit to death row only confirms Everett's suspicions that Beachum was not the killer. The reporter begins a hurried search for information that will stay the execution. Plagued by his inner demons, the reporter has 12 hours left to save the life of a man he knows is innocent.

Product Details

Release Date:	05/03/2016
UPC:	0883929526406
Original Release:	1999
Rating:	R
Source:	Warner Home Video
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:07:00
Sales rank:	16,395

Special Features

The scene of the crime - cast/crew interviews; True Crime: true stories - a reporter's true-life experiences that parallel the movie; Diana Krall music video "Why Should I Care?"; Theatrical trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Clint Eastwood	Steve Everett,Kate Everett
Isaiah Washington	Frank Beachum
Denis Leary	Bob
James Woods	Alan
Bernard Hill	Luther
Diane Venora	Barbara
Michael McKean	Rev. Shillerman
Michael Jeter	Dale
Frances Fisher	Cecilia Nussbaum
Sydney Tamiia Poitier	Jane March
Mary McCormack	Michelle Ziegler
Penny Bridges	Gail Beachum
Francesca Fisher-Eastwood	Kate Everett
Nicky Blair	Actor
John Finn	Reedy
Lucy Liu	Toy Shop Girl
Jack Greene	Actor
Lennie Niehaus	Actor,Composer
Larry Gross	Actor
LisaGay Hamilton	Bonnie Beechum
Tom McGowan	Tom Donaldson
Don West	Roger Waters
Erik King	Pussy Man
Richard D. Zanuck	Actor
Alicia Silverstone	Actor
Paul Brickman	Actor
Kevin Dillon	Actor
Lili Fini Zanuck	Actor
Bill Nunn	Actor
Stephen Schiff	Actor
Michael Bowen	Actor
Tom Rooker	Actor
Ann Devaney	Actor
Hattie Winston	Angela Russel
Marla Sokoloff	Actor
Tara Subkoff	Actor
David Packer	Actor
Laila Robins	Patricia Findley
Graham Beckel	Arnold McCardle
Marissa Ribisi	Amy Wilson
Christine Ebersole	Bridget Rossiter
Anthony Zerbe	Henry Lowenstein
Nancy Giles	Leesha Mitchell
William Windom	Neil

Technical Credits

Larry Gross

Paul Brickman

Stephen Schiff

Andrew Klavan

Pat Verducci

Clint Eastwood	Director,Producer
John Frazer	Special Effects
Phyllis Huffman	Casting
Lili Fini Zanuck	Producer
Richard D. Zanuck	Producer
Larry Gross	Screenwriter
Paul Brickman	Screenwriter
Stephen Schiff	Screenwriter
Andrew Klavan	Screenwriter
Tom Rooker	Executive Producer
Bub Asman	Sound Effects
Mitchell Boyce	Sound Effects
David E. Campbell	Sound Effects
Lucy Coldsnow-Smith	Sound Effects
Pat Verducci	Director,Screenwriter
Mark Amin	Producer

Editorial Reviews

True Crime, Clint Eastwood's 21st effort as a director, features his usual markings, but also a few new wrinkles. The adjustments seem dictated by the advancing age of Eastwood's usual leading man -- himself. While this makes True Crime an interesting outing for Eastwood, he still has a couple of adjustments to make. The crime drama carries Eastwood's stamp by offering a flawed hero, efficient storytelling, quality acting, and a moody style with both light and dark moments. What sets the film apart is that the suspense comes primarily from an intellectual race against the clock and not a set of physical action pieces. Eastwood's Steve Everett uses brains, not bullets. In Magnum Force, Dirty Harry says, "A man's got to know his limitations," and late in his career, Eastwood the director seems to realize that Eastwood the actor is too old to make a convincing action hero. But he doesn't seem to realize that he's also too old to make a convincing stud; the fact that every woman in the film wants to bed Everett undermines the believability of the plot. In fact, the plot as a whole is fairly incredible. Screenwriters Larry Gross, Paul Brickman, and Stephen Schiff make it a bit too easy for Everett to solve this case, with much of the unfolding mystery coming off as contrived. On the plus side, the characters are all believable as full-fledged humans, thanks to the actors. All of the performances are excellent, especially that of Isaiah Washington) as doomed convict Frank Beachum, whose born-again Christianity comes off as heartfelt. Still, Everett's personal story is more compelling than the execution story, and Eastwood's best moments come in the comedic scenes opposite James Woods and Denis Leary.

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