Floated2
The Company You Keep stars Robert Redford (Jim Grant) as a public-interest lawyer and widower living quietly with young daughter Isabel in the Upstate New York town of Saugerties. Quiet for him turns to upheaval with the capture of Sharon Solarz (Susan Sarandon), the most-wanted radical Weatherman fugitive who has been living underground. Aggressive Albany reporter Ben (Shia LaBeouf), using his connection to former college friend and junior FBI agent Diana (Anna Kendrick), gets access to Sharon and clues to Grant, another fugitive, who lives under an assumed name. The Company You Keep is relatively a slow paced political drama but within the final act, the film does pick up and becomes an entertaining watch. Surrounding with a great cast, the film succeeds at that aspect as there are many characters given small roles.
jormatuominen
Normally one does not expect a suspense thriller to offer much insight or depth of thought. What Robert Redford accomplished here is quite a piece of work as he brings a lot of real life issues seamlessly into that framework. The major one is the generation gap - the difficulty of a younger generation to really grasp what the old timers (played by legacy greats such as Susan Sarandon, Julie Christie and so on) are so painfully trying to gab about. Think of Eastwood's Grand Torino and you get the general idea. Another issue is the role of media and nature of journalism, handled very intelligently and in depth (trust me, I'm a journalist so I should know). I found the interplay between Redford as the old lawyer and Shia LaBeouf as the young journalist to be absolutely exemplary. The chase plot was really not the reason for the film to be made but it worked fine for me. I also enjoyed the fact that some key turns of the plot are not explained verbally but are quickly and clearly shown to the viewer. A sure sign of a master director.
tao902
Based on the true story of the radical Weather Underground political movement in the US who protested against the Viet Nam war and political establishment.In 1981 a bank raid by former members of the group resulted in a security guard being shot dead. The film looks at the lives of some of the former members who have hidden their past. A local reporter investigates Jim Grant (Robert Redford) and exposes his double life. Grant leaves his daughter and goes into hiding to clear his name, which he does enabling him to return to a normal life, reunited with his daughter.A low key but gripping thriller that focuses on interesting, strong characters. A well made, convincing film that reveals a lesser known aspect of American history.
MovieHoliks
I've had this 2012 movie sitting around on a DVD-RW FOR-ever now, and finally got around to watching it over the Memorial Day Weekend. I usually enjoy just about anything Robert Redford directs, and this film does not disappoint.Redford also stars as a former "Weather Underground" member brought out of hiding when a former colleague (Susan Sarandon) is arrested. For those not familiar with the Weather Underground (Also known as the "Weathermen")- they were an underground group of young protesters in the 1960s, who in protest of government activities- particularly America's involvement in the war in Vietnam- they bombed several government buildings. It really bugs me when people compare them with the likes of terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda and now ISIS. Unlike those fundamental Islamic terrorists, the Weathermen never actually killed anyone- other than one of their own who was accidentally killed in an explosion. They kept our government on their toes at a time corruption was at an all-time high.Okay, now to get off my soap box and continue with this review. LOL A reporter played by Shia LaBeouf calls out Redford to come to the aid of his arrested colleague, but he instead goes MIA to prove his innocence in a mission that went wrong decades earlier, and had an innocent person killed. He employs the likes of past Weathermen members played by- get a load of this cast- Julie Christie, Sam Elliott, Stephen Root, and Nick Nolte! I must say it was really something seeing Redford and Nolte on screen together for the first time- which I don't think this has ever happened- ?? I definitely enjoyed this dramatic thriller. I don't think it's RR's best film, either as an actor or director. But it's definitely worth a watch- if not for that cast alone-?? Terrance Howard, Anna Kendrick, Brendan Gleeson, Chris Cooper, Stanley Tucci, and one of my fav. character actors, Richard Jenkins, round out the cast.
AD
