L'ultimo appello

I just finished watching this after I just finished hearing about it. I'll say it's not great, but its definitely worth the time to watch.

You have a very dramatic story of a murdering bigot's grandson (who's a lawyer) trying to save his grandfather (Gene Hackman) from his execution in 28 days. Just from their you know the plot is going to thicken.

When I saw this movie had Gene Hackman and Faye Dunaway I said "great I love those actors". It's also got Chris O'Donnell, OK not a bad actor (but does he remind anyone else of Matthew Perry?), and it's even got Bo Jackson.

I was surprised by a few things. One was that, Bo Jackson, despite not having many lines, was quite good at acting. Another less pleasant was that, as much as I love her, Faye Dunaway did not do an overly impressive performance. Watch her in "Bonnie and Clyde" and then compare her to THIS role... you're not even on the same chart. Playing a rich Southern Bell is maybe more difficult for her, but she did have a few good scene's playing a drunk. One thing that didn't surprise me was Gene Hackman. Mr. Hackman is undoubtedly a great actor, is this movie he made no exception. He definitely needs to give thanks to his make up crew, but he certainly delivered the punches. The emotions he showed seemed so powerful, like he's really ready to join in a lynching. But he's also prepared, not ready, but prepared to forgive.

Really i think that the only problem with this movies was the scenes without Gene Hackman. The rest of the scenes made everything seem more like a "Made for TV movie". The chemistry between Adam Hall (Chris O'Donnell) and Nora Stark (Lela Rochon) was played off of more when they WEREN'T together. With better acting this could have been a much better film. But still it was not bad.

Kudos to John Grisham for the novel, It's a good idea, it wasn't played out as well as it could have... But still, it's still worth while watching.

Idealistic attorney Chris O'Donnell (as Adam Hall) goes down to Mississippi, to take on the "death row clemency case of his onetime Klansman grandfather" Gene Hackman (as Sam Cayhall). "With just 28 days before the execution, Adam sets out to retrace the events leading to the crime for which Sam was convicted. As the impending death sentence looms closer, Adam works quickly to uncover the family's history for any hidden clues. In a white-knuckle series of twists and turns, Adam discovers deceptions and dark secrets that ultimately lead him to the startling truth," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.

"White-knuckled"? Indeed not. "The Chamber" (as in gas chamber) starts off very well; and, Mr. Hackman's portrayal of the yellow-teethed racist is worth a look. Faye Dunaway (as Lee Cayhall Bowman) has a showy supporting role. All in all, the film's personnel portends a much better story than the one which appears on screen. Building up a romance between blue-eyed Mr. O'Donnell and brown-skinned Lela Rochon (as Nora Stark) seems like such an obvious way to improve the story (whether or not it was done in the John Grisham novel), you've got to wonder how on Earth they missed the obvious.

***** The Chamber (10/11/96) James Foley ~ Chris O'Donnell, Gene Hackman, Faye Dunaway

Sam Cayhall (Gene Hackman) is set to be executed for a bombing thirty years ago in Mississippi that killed two Jewish boys. His grandson Adam (Chris O'Donnell) has been avoiding the hateful legacy of his Klan grandfather. The young lawyer takes on the case. His investigation reveals that others were involved and he struggles to stop the execution.

Gene Hackman is a great racist but his character is irredeemable. Chris O'Donnell has his boyish looks but I don't sense the substance. Faye Dunaway is simply horrible in this one. The story is flat. The legal thriller is ultimately meaningless. Other than Hackman, this movie doesn't have much.

"The Chamber" tanked at the Box Office when it was released back in '96 due to critics' negative reaction and it was even bashed by the author of the novel himself, John Grisham, who called it a "disaster". Well, i don't know if it was Grisham's genuine feelings about the film or he was just jumping in the bandwagon of badmouthing this, for saving himself to earn more millions from Hollywood for the next screen adaptation of one of his works.

"The Chamber" isn't by all means a great movie or even one of the best Grisham's adaptations, but it's much better than the bad reputation it got then and still have over the years.

Some reviewers here wrote about "major" differences from the book to the screen, but as far as i read the majority of it, they're just picking on the movie, because nothing of them are noteworthy, and about EVERY movie adaptation from the literary world, it change certain aspects from the plot and / or the characters for the storytelling suit the big screen better.

James Foley (who helm'd the vastly underrated dark teen drama, "Reckless"; the splendid crime / thriller, "At Close Range" or the superb drama film adapted from Pulitzer Prize- and Tony-winning play, "Glengarry Glen Ross") knows how to handle social dramas of this kind, approaching dark subjects on the human condition, awareness and behavior and "The Chamber" is a competent exercise on that.

Gene Hackman delivers here one of his best performances from the 90's as the hateful bigot, Sam Cayhall, which deserved more recognition and Chris O'Donnel, playing his rookie lawyer and grandson who's advocating him, isn't bland here, in fact, he's solid, looking more mature in his acting and showing how he learned since working with Pacino in "Scent of a Woman".

Faye Dunaway is a bit 'out' in her acting, going over-the-top in every scene and being just 11 years younger than Hackman and looking every year of it, it looks implausible the father / daughter kinship.

The rest of the cast was given almost nothing to do (some appears in tiny roles such as Robert Prosky), but perform the best they could out of it, especially Raymond J. Barry in a memorable turn as the vicious Klansman.

In short, "The Chamber" is worth a watch for fans of Grisham's big screen adaptations and 'death row" flicks such as "Dead Man Walking" ('95) or "Stephen King's The Green Mile" ('99).

I give it a solid 7.5 !!

Most reviews on this site, neglect to mention how vividly the film captures the racist politics of the American South at this time. The actions of all politicians reveals how difficult it can be to seek justice. They are always looking sideways. Also the crowd outside the execution site shows how easy it is to stir up mob emotion. Again, nicely laid out and captured on film. The film visually translated Grishelm's understanding of Southern culture and politics.

I also thought Chris O'Donnell captured the intensity of someone who is confronting his family's past. The camera work, which holds on his face, assists in helping us to see the quiet determination with which he works. (The camera is a good replacement for the interior monologue of fiction!)I also liked the flash-backs which help him to comprehend just where his father came from and why suicide might have been a response.

This film is timely today in lieu of the polarization of American politics. Scary stuff!