The Next Three Days
Encyclopedia
The Next Three Days is a 2010 thriller film directed by Paul Haggis
and starring Russell Crowe
and Elizabeth Banks
. It was released in the United States on November 19, 2010 and was filmed on location in Pittsburgh. It is a remake of the 2008 French film Pour Elle (Anything for Her
) by Fred Cavayé and Guillaume Lemans.
) is convicted of murdering her boss after an altercation at work. Following the failure of her appeal, Lara's husband John Brennan (Crowe
), a professor at a community college, becomes obsessed with the idea of breaking her out of jail, while their son Luke ceases to acknowledge her during their prison visits.
John consults Damon Pennington (Neeson
), a former convict who successfully escaped from prison seven times. Damon advises John to study the prison, saying "every prison has a key". Damon also warns him that the initial escape from the prison will be easy compared with avoiding capture after the escape. To that end, John must obtain false passports, new social security numbers, and a "truckload of cash" to have a chance of success. Damon also suggests going to an unpopular foreign destination for Americans. John learns Pittsburgh's time to lock-down the city's exits after a call is made to do so: 15 minutes for the city center and 35 minutes for all interstate
s, secondary roads, and stations or airports.
John contemplates several ideas that don't pan out and is defeated more than once, but latches onto a solid plan and the necessary paperwork after some painful efforts. He robs a drug lord
and sets his meth lab on fire before fleeing the scene. He does so to have enough cash when he'd eventually escape with Lara. He then falsifies and plants blood work
results indicating that his wife is in a state of hyperkalemia
, and she is transferred to the hospital. He follows the ambulance and helps her to escape although she is doubtful and reluctant, motivated only by the idea of her son being without either parent.
With the police getting some lucky breaks, they are hot on John and Lara's trail through a series of chases. Throughout the film, John is shown assembling maps, photographs, notes, and other papers on a wall of his house. He tears them down and stuffs them into several garbage bags before leaving to rescue Lara, leaving one bag in the trash outside his home, and the rest in a dumpster
some blocks away. As it turns out he did this selectively to misguide the detectives regarding their final destination. They have an uncomfortable moment at passport control, as a Canadian officer examines their passports and glances at the page of photographs showing people to stop. He allows them to pass. The shift changes, and as they walk down the hall, their photos are added to the list. An international flight is delayed, but the police were after the wrong destination.
At the end of the film, the family ends up safe in Caracas
, Venezuela
. Back in the United States, a detective who had attempted to catch Brennan returns to the scene of the crime although it had been some years since the crime occurred. Using his forensic skills, he manages to put together what really happened. It turns out that the killer of Lara's boss was really just a mugger, and a series of coincidences led to Lara's conviction. He remembers Lara saying a button popped off as she passed the mugger, and notices that it is raining just as it had been the night of the murder. He tosses a piece of paper in the current where the button would've fallen off and it leads into a gutter. He searches the gutter but is unable to find the button. It turns out the button was there, buried under grime and dust, and the detectives just missed it.
) by Fred Cavayé.
The plot of Pour Elle involves a teacher, Julien (Vincent Lindon
), who experiences difficulties when his wife (Diane Kruger
) becomes a suspect in a murder investigation and is arrested; Julien does not believe that his wife is guilty of the crime, and attempts to remove her from the prison. Pour Elle was Cavayé's directing debut. The film was one of the main attractions of the Alliance Française
French Film Festival
in 2010. Cavayé explained the plot and motivation for making the film, "We wanted to make a real human story about an ordinary man doing an extraordinary thing because he's faced with a miscarriage of justice. The film also talks about courage- saying how you show courage depending on the situation. In France
, for example, there were good people who did not go into the Resistance against the Germans
."
Cavayé told The Age
regarding the remake of the film by Haggis, he is eager "to be a spectator of my own film". The director commented on the news his film would be remade by Haggis, "It's a strange feeling. I wrote this story in my very small apartment in Paris. When I saw my name next to Russell Crowe on the net, it was amazing."
stage of production filming in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
. On October 4, 2009, filming of the movie was ongoing and was set to complete on December 12, 2009.
On December 14, 2009, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
reported that filming of The Next Three Days was going to wrap that day, after 52 days of shooting.
The Next Three Days received mixed reviews.
Rotten Tomatoes
gives the film a score of 50% based on review from 144 critics, with an average score of 5.9/10. The critical consensus is: "Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks give it their all, but their solid performances aren't quite enough to compensate for The Next Three Days uneven pace and implausible plot."
Roger Ebert
awarded the film two and a half out of four stars and said, "The Next Three Days is not a bad movie, it's just somewhat of a waste of the talent involved."
Paul Haggis
Paul Edward Haggis is a Canadian screenwriter, producer, and director. He spent his early career producing and directing various American and Canadian television network series.-Early life and education:...
and starring Russell Crowe
Russell Crowe
Russell Ira Crowe is a New Zealander Australian actor , film producer and musician. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius in the 2000 historical epic film Gladiator, directed by Ridley Scott, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor, a...
and Elizabeth Banks
Elizabeth Banks
Elizabeth Maresal Mitchell , known professionally as Elizabeth Banks, is an American actress. Banks had her film debut in the low-budget independent film Surrender Dorothy...
. It was released in the United States on November 19, 2010 and was filmed on location in Pittsburgh. It is a remake of the 2008 French film Pour Elle (Anything for Her
Anything for Her
Anything for Her is a 2008 French thriller film starring Diane Kruger and Vincent Lindon, and is the directorial debut of Fred Cavayé. The film was remade in the United States in 2010 as The Next Three Days...
) by Fred Cavayé and Guillaume Lemans.
Plot
Lara Brennan (BanksElizabeth Banks
Elizabeth Maresal Mitchell , known professionally as Elizabeth Banks, is an American actress. Banks had her film debut in the low-budget independent film Surrender Dorothy...
) is convicted of murdering her boss after an altercation at work. Following the failure of her appeal, Lara's husband John Brennan (Crowe
Russell Crowe
Russell Ira Crowe is a New Zealander Australian actor , film producer and musician. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius in the 2000 historical epic film Gladiator, directed by Ridley Scott, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor, a...
), a professor at a community college, becomes obsessed with the idea of breaking her out of jail, while their son Luke ceases to acknowledge her during their prison visits.
John consults Damon Pennington (Neeson
Liam Neeson
Liam John Neeson, OBE is an Irish actor who has been nominated for an Oscar, a BAFTA and three Golden Globe Awards.He has starred in a number of notable roles including Oskar Schindler in Schindler's List, Michael Collins in Michael Collins, Peyton Westlake in Darkman, Jean Valjean in Les...
), a former convict who successfully escaped from prison seven times. Damon advises John to study the prison, saying "every prison has a key". Damon also warns him that the initial escape from the prison will be easy compared with avoiding capture after the escape. To that end, John must obtain false passports, new social security numbers, and a "truckload of cash" to have a chance of success. Damon also suggests going to an unpopular foreign destination for Americans. John learns Pittsburgh's time to lock-down the city's exits after a call is made to do so: 15 minutes for the city center and 35 minutes for all interstate
Interstate
An Interstate is a type of high-speed, limited-access highway in the United StatesInterstate may also refer to:-Media:*Interstate 60 , a metaphysical comedy/drama road film...
s, secondary roads, and stations or airports.
John contemplates several ideas that don't pan out and is defeated more than once, but latches onto a solid plan and the necessary paperwork after some painful efforts. He robs a drug lord
Drug lord
A drug lord, drug baron or kingpin is the term used to describe a person who controls a sizable network of persons involved in the illegal drugs trade. Such figures are often difficult to bring to justice, as they might never be directly in possession of something illegal, but are insulated from...
and sets his meth lab on fire before fleeing the scene. He does so to have enough cash when he'd eventually escape with Lara. He then falsifies and plants blood work
Blood Work
Blood Work is a 2002 American mystery suspense thriller film produced, directed by, and starring Clint Eastwood. The film co-stars Jeff Daniels, Wanda De Jesús, and Anjelica Huston. It is based off the novel of the same name by Michael Connelly....
results indicating that his wife is in a state of hyperkalemia
Hyperkalemia
Hyperkalemia refers to the condition in which the concentration of the electrolyte potassium in the blood is elevated...
, and she is transferred to the hospital. He follows the ambulance and helps her to escape although she is doubtful and reluctant, motivated only by the idea of her son being without either parent.
With the police getting some lucky breaks, they are hot on John and Lara's trail through a series of chases. Throughout the film, John is shown assembling maps, photographs, notes, and other papers on a wall of his house. He tears them down and stuffs them into several garbage bags before leaving to rescue Lara, leaving one bag in the trash outside his home, and the rest in a dumpster
Dumpster
A dumpster is a large steel waste receptacle designed to be emptied into garbage trucks. The word is a genericized trademark of Dumpster, a American brand name for a type of mobile garbage bin...
some blocks away. As it turns out he did this selectively to misguide the detectives regarding their final destination. They have an uncomfortable moment at passport control, as a Canadian officer examines their passports and glances at the page of photographs showing people to stop. He allows them to pass. The shift changes, and as they walk down the hall, their photos are added to the list. An international flight is delayed, but the police were after the wrong destination.
At the end of the film, the family ends up safe in Caracas
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
. Back in the United States, a detective who had attempted to catch Brennan returns to the scene of the crime although it had been some years since the crime occurred. Using his forensic skills, he manages to put together what really happened. It turns out that the killer of Lara's boss was really just a mugger, and a series of coincidences led to Lara's conviction. He remembers Lara saying a button popped off as she passed the mugger, and notices that it is raining just as it had been the night of the murder. He tosses a piece of paper in the current where the button would've fallen off and it leads into a gutter. He searches the gutter but is unable to find the button. It turns out the button was there, buried under grime and dust, and the detectives just missed it.
Cast
- Russell CroweRussell CroweRussell Ira Crowe is a New Zealander Australian actor , film producer and musician. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius in the 2000 historical epic film Gladiator, directed by Ridley Scott, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor, a...
as John Brennan - Elizabeth BanksElizabeth BanksElizabeth Maresal Mitchell , known professionally as Elizabeth Banks, is an American actress. Banks had her film debut in the low-budget independent film Surrender Dorothy...
as Lara Brennan - Brian DennehyBrian DennehyBrian Mannion Dennehy is an American actor of film, stage and screen.-Early years:Dennehy was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of Hannah and Edward Dennehy, who was a wire service editor for the Associated Press; he has two brothers, Michael and Edward. Dennehy is of Irish ancestry and was...
as George Brennan - Olivia WildeOlivia WildeOlivia Wilde is an American actress and fashion model. She began acting in the early 2000s, and has since appeared in a number of film and television parts, including roles in the serial-drama The O.C. and The Black Donnellys. She portrayed Dr...
as Nicole - Lennie JamesLennie JamesLennie James is an English actor and playwright.-Career:James attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, graduating in 1988...
as Lieutenant Nabulsi - Aisha HindsAisha HindsAisha Hinds is an American television and film actress, known for her recurring roles on the TV shows Dollhouse, HawthoRNe, Invasion, True Blood, and Detroit 1-8-7.-Films:* Assault on Precinct 13...
as Detective Collero - Daniel SternDaniel Stern (actor)Daniel Jacob Stern is an American film and television actor. He is known for his roles in the Hollywood films C.H.U.D., Diner, City Slickers and the first two Home Alone films, and as the narrator for the television series The Wonder Years.-Early life:Stern was born in Bethesda, Maryland to a...
as Meyer Fisk - Ty SimpkinsTy SimpkinsTy Keegan Simpkins is an American child actor.-Life and career:Simpkins was born in New York City. He first appeared on TV when he was three weeks old. His first role was on One Life to Live where he shared the recurring role as John "Jack" Cramer...
as Luke - RZARZARobert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...
as Mouss - Jonathan TuckerJonathan TuckerJonathan Moss Tucker is an American film and television actor, best known for his roles in the movies The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Hostage, In the Valley of Elah and The Ruins, and The Black Donnellys on television....
as David - Kevin CorriganKevin CorriganKevin Fitzgerald Corrigan is an American actor who has appeared mostly in independent films and television since the 1990s.-Life and career:Corrigan was born in The Bronx, New York to an Irish-American father and a Puerto Rican mother...
as Alex - Jason BegheJason BegheJason Beghe is an American film and television actor and critic of Scientology. As a young man he attended the Collegiate School in New York City, where he became best friends with John F. Kennedy, Jr. and David Duchovny. Beghe is married and lives in Los Angeles, California.Beghe starred in the...
as Detective Quinnan - Allan SteeleAllan SteeleAllan Steele is an American actor and writer. He is perhaps best known for playing Sergeant Harris in the film The Next Three Days, and for TV roles on The Black Donnellys, NYPD Blue, Family Law, Time of Your Life and Falcone.- References :...
as Sergeant Harris - Trudie StylerTrudie StylerTrudie Styler is an English actress and producer. She is the second wife of the musician Sting.-Life and career:Styler was born in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, England. She attended North Bromsgrove High School, where one of her teachers was Clifford T. Ward...
as Dr. Byrdie Lifson - Liam NeesonLiam NeesonLiam John Neeson, OBE is an Irish actor who has been nominated for an Oscar, a BAFTA and three Golden Globe Awards.He has starred in a number of notable roles including Oskar Schindler in Schindler's List, Michael Collins in Michael Collins, Peyton Westlake in Darkman, Jean Valjean in Les...
as Damon Pennington
Pour Elle
The Next Three Days is a remake of the 2008 French film Pour Elle (Anything for HerAnything for Her
Anything for Her is a 2008 French thriller film starring Diane Kruger and Vincent Lindon, and is the directorial debut of Fred Cavayé. The film was remade in the United States in 2010 as The Next Three Days...
) by Fred Cavayé.
The plot of Pour Elle involves a teacher, Julien (Vincent Lindon
Vincent Lindon
Vincent Lindon is a French actor who has been active for more than 25 years.Lindon was a lover of Princess Caroline of Monaco from 1990 to 1995. He is currently separated from his wife, the French actress Sandrine Kiberlain.-Selected filmography:-External links:...
), who experiences difficulties when his wife (Diane Kruger
Diane Kruger
Diane Kruger is a German actress and former fashion model. She is known for roles such as Helen in Troy, Dr. Abigail Chase in National Treasure and its sequel, Bridget von Hammersmark in Inglourious Basterds, Anna in Mr...
) becomes a suspect in a murder investigation and is arrested; Julien does not believe that his wife is guilty of the crime, and attempts to remove her from the prison. Pour Elle was Cavayé's directing debut. The film was one of the main attractions of the Alliance Française
Alliance française
The Alliance française , or AF, is an international organisation that aims to promote French language and culture around the world. created in Paris on 21 July 1883, its primary concern is teaching French as a second language and is headquartered in Paris -History:The Alliance was created in Paris...
French Film Festival
Alliance Française French Film Festival
The Alliance Française French Film Festival is a yearly film festival organised by Alliance Française - the Fédération des Alliances Françaises d' Australie. Films are shown at Palace Cinemas Como, Balwyn, Westgarth and Kino in Melbourne; the Palace Academy Twin, Verona and Norton Street in...
in 2010. Cavayé explained the plot and motivation for making the film, "We wanted to make a real human story about an ordinary man doing an extraordinary thing because he's faced with a miscarriage of justice. The film also talks about courage- saying how you show courage depending on the situation. In France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, for example, there were good people who did not go into the Resistance against the Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
."
Cavayé told The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
regarding the remake of the film by Haggis, he is eager "to be a spectator of my own film". The director commented on the news his film would be remade by Haggis, "It's a strange feeling. I wrote this story in my very small apartment in Paris. When I saw my name next to Russell Crowe on the net, it was amazing."
Filming
In October 2009, Haggis and his staff were in the principal photographyPrincipal photography
thumb|300px|Film production on location in [[Newark, New Jersey]].Principal photography is the phase of film production in which the movie is filmed, with actors on set and cameras rolling, as distinct from pre-production and post-production....
stage of production filming in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. On October 4, 2009, filming of the movie was ongoing and was set to complete on December 12, 2009.
On December 14, 2009, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
reported that filming of The Next Three Days was going to wrap that day, after 52 days of shooting.
Release
In October 2009, the film was originally scheduled to be released in 2011, by March 2010, the Australian media company Village Roadshow was set to release the film in Australia in November 2010. It was released in the United States on November 19, 2010.Critical response
The Next Three Days received mixed reviews.
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
gives the film a score of 50% based on review from 144 critics, with an average score of 5.9/10. The critical consensus is: "Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks give it their all, but their solid performances aren't quite enough to compensate for The Next Three Days uneven pace and implausible plot."
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
awarded the film two and a half out of four stars and said, "The Next Three Days is not a bad movie, it's just somewhat of a waste of the talent involved."