A Murder of Crows

Starring:Cuba Gooding Jr., Tom Berenger, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Eric Stoltz, Mark Pellegrino, Ashley Laurence, Carmen Argenziano, Doug Wert, Nate Adams (III), Jeremiah Black, Derek Broes, Adrian Colon, Gaelle Comparat, Tara Crespo, Anastasia Drake, RenÃ©e Estevez, Ellen Gerstein, Ron Gural, Jim Hanna, Eric James
Director: Rowdy Herrington
Studio: Lions Gate
Product Type: DVD

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Writer-director Rowdy Herrington takes innocence, guilt, ambition, and morality, and twists them into a suspenseful, seductive spiral that can't help but suck you in. When defense attorney Russell Lawson (Cuba Gooding Jr.) realizes his client (Eric Stoltz) is guilty, he turns on him mid-trial--a move that costs him both the case and his career. Disbarred and disheartened, he retreats to Key West, where he meets a peculiar retired teacher named Christopher Marlowe and the film's roller coaster ride begins. In a quick reversal of fortune, Lawson makes an ethical compromise and becomes wildly successful--and then just as suddenly becomes a fugitive from the law, trying to track down a murderer before being tracked down himself. Gooding's constant voice-overs tend to distract from the story rather than add to it; however, his down-home earnestness makes him a good foil for a cranky cop (Tom Berenger) who appears to be more interested in making an arrest than in finding the truth. But then nothing here is what it first appears to be, and although Herrington leaves just enough clues for the astute viewer to pick up on the film's central metaphor, the conclusion still manages to surprise. With such a talented cast and tight writing, it's hard to fathom why A Murder of Crows didn't do better in theaters. At least on video the film, like Lawson, is given a second chance. --Larisa Lomacky Moore

Customer Reviews:

Formulaic........2007-04-13

A Murder of Crows (Rowdy Herrington, 1999)

Herrington, best known for the Patrick Swayze vehicle Road House, turns in a by-the-numbers thriller here. Not awful, but not great, either. Lawson Russell (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) is a recently-disbarred lawyer who got the ax after recusing himself from the trial of Thurman Parks III (Eric Stoltz), a slimeball even Russell can't bring himself to defend. A year later, low on cash and running a fishing boat in the Florida Keys, working on his perpetually-unfinished novel, he meets an old man with the improbable name of Christopher Marlowe who wants him to read over a manuscript. He goes to return it the next day and finds the old man has died of a heart attack, so Russell appropriates the manuscript, which of course becomes a smash success-- after which Rusell becomes the target of obsessive-cop stereotype Clifford Dubose (Tom Berenger), because all the murders in the book Russell appropriated really happened, and now he's the prime suspect. I'm pretty sure you can figure out what happens from there.

It's mildly amusing, and good acting is turned in by Stoltz, Gooding, and Berenger, though they have little to do other than play cardboard cutouts. Ashley Laurence also shows up as Gooding's publisher, and any excuse to see Ashley Laurence on a screen is worth your time; it's got an empty-calories feel to it, however, and a few days after seeing it, you're likely to start wondering if you remember certain details (say, for example, the entire last half-hour of the film) correctly. ** ½

Deceptive? Trap.......2007-01-16

Lawson Russell (Cuba Gooding Jr.) lawyer and aspiring writer is critiquing book for an aged man who dies. There he comes in position of a manuscript for a novel about several lawyers being murdered. He published it as his own. His novel is a great success.

There is only one catch; these were real deaths and only the writer of the novel could have known the details. So the writer must be the murderer.

To further complicate things there is no record of the dead novelist.

We have seen this primes several times but very few are this well acted.

If You Like "The Usual Suspects", Check This Out.......2006-11-01

This is an excellent film. There are great plot twists and Cuba Gooding, Jr. plays his part well. Be careful in reading some of the reviews below, because there seems to be some unintentional information revealed that might make the movie less enjoyable. Gooding's character is an everyman type character -- not perfect, but a good man. He gets disbarred for doing what he believes is right. Then, later in the movie he gets in trouble when he does something he knows to be unethical. The character is sympathetic because extraordinary circumstances (believable due to a well-written plot) force him to make some tough decisions. Maybe we would have reacted differently, but we understand his reasoning. So, when he finds himself accused of a murder he did not commit, we root for him to come out on top. Can he discover the murderer before the police catch him? Gooding is great, but this twisting, thought-provoking plot is an absolute star! A vastly underated movie. I highly recommend it!

A Decent Thriller: Could Have Been Better!.......2006-10-15

Ah, the dangers of plagiarism. How many times were we told that in school? This film, "A Murder of Crows," deals with a lawyer who doesn't mind taking a moral high ground on his guilty client, but takes an moral and ethical low stand when it comes to claiming a novel as his own. (Cuba Gooding Jr.) stars as a lawyer who finds himself disbarred after be warned by the judge on a murder trial not to have second thoughts about the client (Eric Stoltz) he is defending. Gooding disregards the judge's order's and finds himself disbarred for life in the practice of law. What's he to do? How about write a book? Or at least claim credit for one.

Gooding will eventually wish he had never seen a novel by the time this film is over. Moreover, when he is suspected in the killing's of several defense lawyers, and plenty of evidence to back it up, he find himself on the opposite side of the law. With a detective (Tom Berenger) hot on his trail, Gooding tries to track down the man he believes has set him up. It appears that all of the murdered lawyers were able to get their client's off the hook. Does someone dislike lawyers? The story is little unbelievable in many areas, however, it is an interesting watch nonetheless. Recommended. Rent it.

Good Thriller.......2006-02-14

What if someone just dropped a brilliant book draft in your lap and then died? You might publish it as your own work. That is what happens to lawyer Lawson Russell (Cuba Gooding, Jr.). Lawson becomes famous, until he learns that the events in the book - where five lawyers are murdered - actually occurred and he is being charged with the crimes. Lawson must outrun police and try to unravel the mystery to save his own life.

Cuba was a good actor, as was Tom Berenger as a police detective chasing Lawson. I love Tom Berenger, and feel he should be cast in more films.

The only thing I didn't like about this film with an incredibly original plot and well-written screenplay, was the gratuituous sex and swearing. Because of this, I can't watch this film with my mom or siblings. Do we really need to see a nymphomaniac book publisher with a ring in her nipple?

Average customer rating:

Formulaic.
Deceptive? Trap
If You Like "The Usual Suspects", Check This Out
A Decent Thriller: Could Have Been Better!
Good Thriller

A Murder of Crows (2001)
Starring: Cuba Gooding Jr. , Tom Berenger , Marianne Jean-Baptiste , Eric Stoltz , and Mark Pellegrino
Director: Rowdy Herrington
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 6305911975
Release Date: 2001-05-22

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Customer Reviews:

Formulaic........2007-04-13

Deceptive? Trap.......2007-01-16

If You Like "The Usual Suspects", Check This Out.......2006-11-01

A Decent Thriller: Could Have Been Better!.......2006-10-15

Good Thriller.......2006-02-14

Average customer rating:

A Murder of Crows [Region 2]
Starring: Cuba Gooding Jr. , Tom Berenger , Marianne Jean-Baptiste , Eric Stoltz , and Mark Pellegrino
Director: Rowdy Herrington
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Thrillers | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B00006JY6Y

Average customer rating:

Thrillers | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B00004VYI8

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