A Vida de David Gale

Directed by the legendary Sir Alan Parker, this is the story of David Gale, a University of Texas professor of philosophy against capital punishment who is accused of murdering a fellow activist and is sent to death row.

Kevin Spacey and Laura Linney deliver great performances in the flashbacks. This movie is by far one of Spacey's strongest performances, he is always very subtle and insightful portraying David Gale. Laura Linney really makes a name for herself in this motion picture, she's as consistently complex and likable here as she is in "Primal Fear" and "You Can Count on Me". Kate Winslet, however, has problems in carefully crafting her character. She's called upon to cry about four or five times in this film and each time she does so, the action unfortunately rings more and more false. Other than that, she is average. Meanwhile, Gabriel Mann, Leon Rippy and Matt Craven also provide colorful backdrops to the story at hand with their credible supporting characters.

"The Life of David Gale" is a film that had a great opportunity to create controversy about the death penalty. Unfortunately, it is excessively underrated by critics, despite being nominated for the Human Rights Award from the Political Film Society and being present at the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival.

Sad and stunning. 8/10

It is strange how much this movie was ignored. It doesn't rank on many critics top 10 list and it wasn't a huge box office success anyway. Weird considering it is one of Kevin spacey's best performances. I almost cried at the end so the movie achieved what it set out to achieve.

The movie is about a man named David Gale(Kevin Spacey) who is a philosophy professor and also a anti-death penalty campaigner. He was arrested some time ago and convicted on the crime of raping and murdering a fellow death penalty campaigner named Constance(the gorgeous Laura Linney). He has been given a death sentence. He asks for a reporter during his last week to tell the real story supposedly. That reporter is Bitsey Bloom(Kate winslet) who shows a genuine disinterest at first towards the case but who has a reputation of reporting on difficult and controversial stories. Bitsey bloom travels with her partner Zack to the facility where Gale is held.

The movie has many twists and turns showing the collapse of David Gale's life as he changes from respected philosophy professor to an ostracised man because of some events in his life. These scenes are quite sad and depressing and Gale doesn't have many friends who stand by him in the hour of need. The way the movie flows is actually quite excellent and the revelation in the middle is quite surprising. It doesn't seem like a gimmick and that's where the movie triumphs.

The performances are quite amazing. Kevin Spacey as David Gale has given one of the best performances in his career and Laura Linney as Constance is cute,smart and amazingly compassionate. Kate winslet as Bitsey Bloom also gives a great performance as a woman who starts off as indifferent to the case but then transforms into a woman who feels genuine sympathy for the plight of David Gale. The background music is also quite amazing and this is one of the best in movies. At the very least it should have gotten an award for this category. The music at certain points is quite emotional and towards the end it is one of the reasons for the beautiful climax.

The only problem I have might be the rewatchability factor. I think I might not watch it again. Maybe because it is too depressing. But it should be definitely watched by people who are interested in the issue of death penalty and its accompanying ethical questions. The questions raised by David Gale in the interview with the Texas governor are one of the best examples. That scene alone is enough for people to watch this movie. The movie is also an example of how one mistake changes the life of a respected person in society and how quickly things can change in life if we are not careful about everything we do. So in essence it is not just a movie for death penalty campaigners and those who are interested in the concept of death penalty. But it is also a movie for people who are interested in human nature in general.

9/10

If you're a fan of Kevin Spacey's, you will not be let down by "The Life of David Gale." Do not read reviews. Do not watch stuff about it on television. Just go see it and experience it for yourself. It's not a perfect film by any stretch (as many, MANY critics have been pointing out), but it does grab you and it does deliver.

This film is underrated. Sure, it's a cliche and a social commentary, however it's the storytelling that grabs the viewer. The narrative is fed slowly to the viewer, giving a small piece each time by a possibly unreliable narrator. This is the part to really watch for.

Kate Winslet is the real star of this film. Her ability to take a hard character and ultimately soften her is a difficult task. I admit it's hard to watch a Kevin Spacey film knowing what we do now, especially with the subject matter.

Although the film is considered a disappointment in terms of critical reviews and box office takings, it is worth a watch.

"The Life of David Gale" is a terrific thriller and is one of the best of 2003. Despite going to this movie through the worst date of my life... shudder, I still have nightmares, this movie was the silver lining. I was very excited to see this movie because it has such an awesome actor, obviously Kevin Spacey and then a great actress Kate Winslet.

This political thriller keeps you on the edge of your seat and keeps you guessing what's going to happen next. Wither you're for or against or undecided about the death penalty, this movie gets to you and keeps you thinking after wards about our justice system in the United States. David Gale is an accused murderer on death row, his last few days he requests to be interviewed by Bitsey Bloom, a journalist who likes to keep her mouth shut even when she shouldn't. He tells her his incredible story about from being one of the most respected men in Texas to one of the most hated for being accused of rape.

"No one sees a person when they look through that glass, they see a murderer and a rapist three days shy of his execution". Is he guilty or not? Trying to figure this out in the story you jump to your own conclusion, this man has been accused of rape, murder, he's lost his family and friends. Take away everything and find out if people just overlook cases or if we should judge the first minute we hear one side of the story. The Life of David Gale is an amazing story that will keep you interested. Just trust me, it's a great movie. I can even watch it without having nightmares about my horrific date. :) OK, just watch it.

10/10