Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance Writer
Samuel L. Jackson (right) as Detective Lorenzo Council and Julianne Moore as Brenda Martin in 'Freedomland'. - CONTRIBUTED
DIRECTED BY Joe Roth with a screenplay written by Richard Price, Freedomland is best regarded as an attempt to examine race relations, the police force, poverty and motherhood. It is a big bite to swallow and the film in part chokes on what it has bitten off.
Freedomland stars Samuel L. Jackson as Detective Lorenzo Council and Julianne Moore as Brenda Martin. Based on Price's novel, the film surrounds the happenings which occur after the disappearance of a young white boy whose mother accuses the resident of a poor black neighbourhood, The Armstrong Houses, of kidnapping him.
DANGERS OF BEING AMERICAN
Freedomland has none of the brash and flair of Crash, but it does shine its spotlight on the dangers of being an American who is found guilty of the offence LWB (Living While Black) and, worse yet, LWBP (Living While Black and Poor).
With the accusation of the kidnapping of a young white boy by a poor black man, the police force comes down on the neighbourhood from which the suspects originates with all its black and blue potential and attempts to swing the baton of justice down hard in an attempt to dig out information.
Yet Freedomland fails to
adequately deal with the issue
of police brutality, race and poverty, due to a lack of focus. This detracts significantly from the film's dramatic potential.
Simultaneously, and with some degree of irony, it is seemingly distracted from its suspenseful thriller ambitions with the mystery of the boy's disappearance by exploring the police and race relations. As such it becomes that bastard child, neither fish nor fowl, unable to either swim or fly.
DISTURBED SINGLE MOTHER
Yet one of the most disturbing elements of this film to grapple with is Brenda Martin. Moore delivers one of her best performances and is quite convincing as a very disturbed single mother. The problem is that the character is not particularly likeable, which manages to work both for and against this film. As such, if one finds Moore's performance to be an engaging portrayal of a disturbed mind under stress, then the chances of ones liking Freedomland is quite good. However, if she strikes you as a crazy stupid woman, Freedomland is more likely to raise your ire than anything else.
Surprisingly, despite having Moore and Jackson along with The Soprano's Eddie Falco (as Karen Colluci) and Ron Elard (as Danny Martin) on its roster, Freedomland does not quite provide powerhouse performances. Even so, it is wonderful to see Jackson in a role where he is not yelling. In truth he yells very well, but it has been getting a little tiring.
The film's grandest flaw lies in its ending. When the story wraps up it is unable to satisfy as either an illuminating take on racial politics and social injustice, or as a thriller. The problems found in the ending are particularly clear as the story goes on for a few minutes longer than necessary, as the writer clearly grapples with attempting to find the film's true meaning from the muddle of issues it attempted to present.
