Full Movie Reviews
Rating of
3.5/4
Conviction review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 07/14/2012
Kenny Waters (Sam Rockwell) was convicted of murder (killing Katharina Brow) in 1983. Betty Anne Waters (Hilary Swank) is determined to set her brother free by taking-up law, passing the bar and representing Kenny. There were 3 witnesses during the case: Sergeant Nancy Taylor (Melissa Leo) from the local police department, his ex-wife, Brenda (Clea DuVall), and his ex-girlfriend, Roseanna (Juliette Lewis). A touching true to life film about persistence, police corruption, lies, friendship, sacrifice and a tight sibling relationship. Screenplay was good with lines like: I hate the legal system, it's so inconvenient." and "You can't give-up." Rockwell and Swank drive the film, both equally impressive. The supporting cast was solid especially Driver and Lewis. Movie was interesting …
Rating of
2.5/4
A (kinda sorta) true story
patjohnson76 - wrote on 03/13/2011
Conviction struggles with telling two stories - one of a strong bond between a brother and sister, and the other being the 20 year struggle of said sister trying to overturn said brother's murder conviction. Given all the time that has to be covered, both stories suffer somewhat, though Swank and Rockwell put in good performances as the Waters siblings. It's a little hard to buy the timeline, however, as Swank's character goes through 20 years without aging.
SPOILER! The biggest factor keeping it from getting to 3 stars, however, is the fact that this "true" story has major embellishments toward the end. The film makes a villain out of real-life Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley. The film would have you believe that despite DNA evidence, Coakley refused to release Waters …
