krupsch
I wanted to like this movie because the murder was well conceived. It is an interesting idea. But the movie is so wildly inaccurate it delves into fantasy and makes it hard to focus on the plot. Anyone who has tried to get a book published knows you can't just waltz into a publishing house (you need an agent), it takes AT LEAST A YEAR (and sometimes years) from a book to go to manuscript to book, and NO BOOK from a brand new author is an instant best seller. It's so ridiculous it takes from the film. A major publisher who wears cleavage as her business attire is a joke.The main character isn't very sympathetic. Personally, I didn't care what happened to him. Gooding seems checked out of this performance. He also seems much to dumb to be a lawyer. A lawyer who had never read Faust is suspect.Finally- the end seems like a tacked on fantasy ending. If the "weak" get justice - where is the justice for the cop - just doing his job? Good idea for a crime story - terrible holes and execution.
Wizard-8
I must admit that when "A Murder Of Crows" was first released, I was quite perplexed. Here was a star (Cuba Gooding Jr.) who two years earlier had got an Oscar for his work in "Jerry Maguire" - and here he now was starring in a direct-to-video movie! Actually, there are signs that this movie WAS intended for theaters - it was made by a production company that had got other movies released to theaters, and the movie looks fairly slick and expensive, enough to be theatrical quality. But no theatrical distributor picked this up, and I think I know why. Gooding (who for some reason thought this project was worthy, seeing that he was also one of the producers) plays a character who is quite annoying at times, with his endless (and often unnecessary) narration, and his quite stupid behavior at times. And the villain's scheme is obvious from the start - I had a good idea what was going on long before Gooding's character found himself in trouble. While it was nice to see Tom Berenger, he is pretty wasted in a role that probably took less than a week to shoot.This movie isn't the worst movie Gooding has done - "Boat Trip" and "Lies & Illusions" were far, far worse - but the movie is still a very unsatisfying experience, and was the start of Gooding's fall as a big Hollywood star.
knlneal
This movie catches you from the beginning and keeps you guessing all the way to the very end. I think this is one of Cuba Gooding's best movies. It is great! The movie keeps you guessing and on your toes throughout the entire movie. I think Tom Berenger and Eric Stoltz both outperform themselves. The acting and dramatics were very well blended. This movie has great artistic directing as well. The costume changes and make-up were quite believable. The dramatics were amazing. The way the movie evolved from the beginning and tied in at the end was excellent. Never saw it coming. I feel this is a very well rounded movie that anyone would enjoy.
Daniel
The movie begins nice enough. Out hero, the lawyer Lawson Russell played Cuba Gooding Jr. gets his lawyer license revoked and his life changed when he can't stand defending an obviously guilty sex-murderer. He throws comments at his own defendant in trial and yet the defendant goes free.Step forward one year. Lawson is working primarily as a fisher guide, taking fishermen out. After not too long, they befriend, and the old man tells him about this novel he has made but not yet published, he gives him a copy, and dies of a heart attack not too much later. Lawson, being and unsuccessful writer himself, decides to publish the old mans novel in his own name.Though suddenly it seems that the murders and happenings in the book already has happened...And from there it goes downhill, really. First of all, i think the atmosphere in the movie is way too light for the message it gives, which is, that justice is unfair, if you have the right means and money. The movie would have been way more successful with a more serious Cuba Gooding Jr., but its not his fault, the scriptwriters did a too good job to portray him as a cocky and sometimes quite arrogant character. And sure, it would be okay... but i feel it still doesn't match the rest of his behavior (i.e selling another mans book as himself is not quite the idealist you'd expect from a man that is so just and cause in the beginning of the movie)Another fault is the obvious technical errors that occur through the movie. I'm not going to spoil the ending (and if i told, i would) but if you've seen a fair share of CSI and/or other crime lab shows, you would know that there are more evidence than the true hypothetic ones (for example, who held the gun and so forth)To conclusion, I really wanted to like this movie, but i really couldn't enjoy it because of different kinds of error that ruins the way the plot is kept up. With another tone of the movie, and a little less trying to put everything on the sharp edge, it would be way better. 5/10
AD
