SEEKING JUSTICE

SEEKING JUSTICE

It is widely known that nick Cage is having on-going financial troubles. In fact he has practically become the poster child of celebrity bankruptcy. In fact, one of his recent films, "Trespass", has him playing a man who is hiding financial hardship from his family.

Instead of resolving his spending habits, Cage's solution is to keep the money rolling in by taking every role that is through at him.

This is working out okay for his finances [I guess] but not so well on the quality of films in which he participates. Since his last decent role "The Bad Lieutenant; Port of Call - New Orleans", Cage has been cast in crap like the "Sorcerers' Apprentice", "Season of the Witch", "Drive Angry" and now "Seeking Justice". he has two other films due out later this year; he's doing it for the money.

This time we find him as Will Gerard, a high school teacher married to a lovely wife (January Jones) who is a musician. They are happily in love, living the lives of Riley in New Orleans when, she is brutally beaten, robbed and raped in that order.

While in the hospital seeing to her on the night of the rape, a mysterious man by the name of Simon (Guy Pearce) approaches Will and informs him that he and his secret organization know who the guy is and would be willing to enact immediate vengeance with the go-ahead from Will. Reluctantly, Will agrees after establishing the parameters of the agreement: Will would have to do some lightweight surveillance and messaging to return the favor.

Immediately, the secret organization whacks the rapist, while retrieving his wife's ruby necklace as proof of execution. case closed.

But things like this are never what they start out and soon, Simon calls saying that it is time for Will to pay up his debt. They assign him to follow a woman who is supposed to be a victim, but actually he is being set up himself.

Next thing he knows he is implicated in the murder of a local reporter - a person described to him as a pedophile. Oops.

Now he's trying to clear his name while ridding himself of the pesky secret society.

It's pretty straightforward from there; plenty of near misses, amazing escapes and the usual one guy who is suddenly outsmarting an entire organization. An organization that is much bigger than he imagined as it includes police and other well placed people.

January Jones, better know as Emma Frost in "X-Men: First Class" "Unknown" and "Pirate Radio" does an admirable job with her role. Sadly she plays the unbelievable role of a woman who is brutally beaten and raped - and is pretty much back to normal within a few weeks. This would be an insult to any woman who has been victimized by sexual assault. It's like: Okay, you were raped... now walk it off and get back to life.

That is the main problem with director Roger Donaldson's film - the characters are not believable in the least bit. There is plenty of action and the film is well paced, but the characters just don't jibe.

"Seeking Justice" is just another paycheck for Nick Cage which has him halfheartedly playing an unbelievable character in unrealistic circumstances. It's one plus is that the movie was filmed in New Orleans. -- GEOFF BURTON

GEOFF BURTON

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