At first glance, the film Freedomland seems to be just another fast-paced thriller about a mother and her kidnapped child, as depicted in the previews.
But like many trailers, this film was grossly misrepresented and is far from your cookie-cutter-crime mystery.
Director Joe Roth, who brought us other cinematic delights, such as Christmas with the Kranks and Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise, makes a drastic departure to present a modern drama.
The mother, Brenda Martin, played by Julianne Moore (Far From Heaven), arrives at the hospital bleeding and traumatized from an apparent carjacking when her son was still in the car.
From the very beginning, all of Moore's interactions with the other actors are way over the top. When questioned by the detective on the scene, Lorenzo Council, played by Samuel L. Jackson (Coach Carter), Moore breaks down and starts screaming while suffering from a combination of an asthma and anxiety attack.
All of this is intensified by rapid and jerky cuts and camera movements leaving the audience to wonder, why all the heightened melodrama and intensity?
And so the scene is set, and all police officers are sent on a wild goose chase trying to find Brenda's 4-year-old son. It just so happens that Brenda said the carjacking took place right near some public housing projects, immediately leading the police to suspect the neighborhood's African-American residents.
Besides trying to figure out who committed the crime and if the mother is telling the whole story, Detective Council is stuck between the color lines.
His character has always been a kind of street cop, watching out for his own people and being able to slip into the police station and local neighborhoods as if he lived there. When "his project" becomes the scene for a racial meltdown, Council is forced to pick sides and is abused by those he's trying to help and even by his fellow police officers.
Throughout the film, many subplots appear that are never quite fleshed out. This gets very tiring after a while when you just want to stick to one story. One might even compare it to an extended version of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, where you automatically predict the elaborate plot twists.
The title of the film is also misleading. Freedomland refers to a wooded park with a condemned children's mental hospital tucked in the back. The site is very disturbing but isn't very pivotal to the plot and makes up less than 10 minutes of the entire movie.
Despite the plot trip-ups, this film has a star-studded cast, some of which are a welcoming relief, and others barely meet expectations. Moore, an enormous talent in her own right and a regular Oscar nominee, delivers a very jarring performance. I don't know if it was her character or her performance, but it was very erratic, confusing and annoying, kind of like the film in general.
Jackson is in a very typecast role but delivers the goods as usual.
For Sopranos fans, you might not recognize small-screen star Edie Falco without her crown of Jersey-blond hair as she hits the big leagues in probably one of the most satisfying performances. Falco plays a mother whose life's work is dedicated to finding abducted children and who helps out on the investigation.
Based on Richard Price's compelling novel, Freedomland has some very telling moments, speaking to the heart of America's race problem and the ongoing battle between urban residents and the cops who are supposed to protect them.
At times, the film may seem like a public service announcement on police brutality, but it's what makes up the bulk of the film's drama.
This sure isn't Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing, but it does have something to say.
Grade: C+
