The Life Of David Gale

What's the Plot?

"Bitsey" Bloom (Kate Winslet) is a much-respected journalist who has served some time in prison for not revealing her source to a court of law. It's this fact that chooses her next assignment; or to be more precise, it chooses her. University Professor David Gale (Kevin Spacey) is on Death Row awaiting execution for a vicious rape and a sadistic murder. His "alleged" victim was his long-time friend and cause-supporter, Constance Hallaway (Laura Linney). Gale has said that he will tell his story to Bitsey only. So she travels to Texas with a wannabe reporter - Zack (Gabriel Mann) - in tow to interview him in the remaining week that he has left. The story she hears however is not one that she expected to be told. Gale, ironically, was a strong campaigner for the abolition of the death penalty along with Constance before he became an inmate awaiting his turn in the chair. Now, Bitsey has been given the challenge to find out the truth of what really happened to Constance, thus clearing Gale's name and maybe even saving his life. However, with only 4 interview sessions before Gale is put to death, time is running out... For both of them.

Constance Halloway (Laura Linney)

The Review

Prison / Death Row drama's are a hit-and-miss business. For every Tom Hanks' The Green Mile, there's a Sharon Stone's The Last Dance. "The Life Of David Gale", with it's pedigree, should have squarely sat next to or even surpassed the Frank Darabont flick but unfortunately falls slightly short of the mark. Director Alan Parker finds himself in familiar Territory with weighty issues being discussed upon the screen. His Mississippi Burning and Angela's Ashes showed that the more serious subjects are not a problem for him and the moral stand-point of the "eye for an eye" attitude towards the death penalty is not visited in-depth but isn't shied away from either.

David Gale (Kevin Spacey)

What could have been a truly soul-searching journey into the pro's and con's of taking someone's life as a form of punishment is turned into a more crowd-drawing and audience-pleasing movie. Spacey, as always, delivers exactly what you've come to expect from him, blending in elements of his The Usual Suspects and Se7en characters to give us the 2 different David Gale's - the broken man awaiting death and the happy man in the flashbacks that starts to see his life fall apart. Winslet shows that she is still an export for this country to be proud of, nailing the American accent and doing a role where she keeps ALL her clothes on whilst still keeping the audience's attention!

"Bitsey" Bloom (Kate Winslet)

Linney only solidifies the position that she, along with the likes of William H. Macy, should be raised out of the "supporting" role category and into the "star" slot, for making a mountain out of her molehill role. All these carry the film along under the secure directing of Parker but the usual slant towards a "Hollywood-type" thrill ride detracts from the caliber on show. That's not to say that it's a bad thing - the pressure to try and solve the truth before it's too late is gripping indeed - it's just that with a more ballsy storyline, this could have possibly been an Oscar contender instead of a good night out at the flicks. A missed opportunity.