IFC Films recently send us over stills and the official trailer for their latest release "Inescapable" The film stars Alexander Siddig, Marisa Tomei, Joshua Jackson and Oded Fehr. Inescapable" is currently playing in limited release and is also available through various VOD providers".

Plot Synopsis:

Adib Abdel Kareem (Siddig) had made the perfect life for himself in Toronto: beautiful wife, two grown daughters, great job. He is a confident man, at ease in any setting - his Syrian background betrayed only by a slight accent and his daughters’ names, Muna and Leila. Adib is a man who has successfully built a life from scratch – a man who had left his past behind. Until his daughter, Muna, disappears in Damascus and his past catches up to him all at once.

Twenty-five years ago, Adib, a promising young officer in the Syrian military police, suddenly left Damascus under suspicious circumstances. He left his entire life behind, including the love of his life, Fatima (Tomei). He made his way to Canada and wiped the slate clean. He never told anyone about his past.

In order to find his daughter, he must confront the past that he left behind. INESCAPABLE is both a tense mystery and a character drama held together by the universal theme of undying and uncompromising love between a father and a daughter.

"Inescapable": Official Trailer

The title refers to the day Julius Caesar was assassinated by a group of senators who feared his role as a dictator would forever destroy their constitutional government. Some of these senators were close friends of his which makes their actions all the more shocking. In the political arena then and now, you’d think those running for office would have their friends and loyal advisors to instill their trust in. But as history shows, the quest of power can tear friendships apart completely and corrupt the seemingly incorruptible. In William Shakespeare’s play of “Julius Caesar,” a soothsayer warns him before he is stabbed to death:

“Beware the Ides of March.”

George Clooney’s latest directorial effort is based on the play “Farragut North” by Beau Willimon, and it looks at how dangerous a political campaign can be for all those involved. They may not get stabbed in the back literally, but there is a lot of that to go around figuratively speaking. It all makes for an intense political thriller that never lets up.

Ryan Gosling stars as Stephen Meyers, a Junior Campaign Manager for Governor Mike Norris (Clooney) who is seeking the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. As the movie opens, Norris is campaigning in Ohio where a win there will all but guarantee him the nomination. Meyers is a strong believer in Norris and what he stands for, but his belief in him and the world of politics is in for a rude awakening. After a secret meeting with the rival campaign manager Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti), trust becomes a precious commodity that’s in very short supply. Meyers also stumbles on an even bigger situation which could destroy the campaign for good.

This is Clooney’s fourth movie as a director, and the abilities he shows behind the camera are never in doubt. “The Ides of March” doesn’t necessarily break any new ground in the political movie genre, but he does great work in generating tension throughout as characters suddenly finds themselves on a precipice which threatens to fall out beneath them with little warning. He also gets great performances from the entire cast as they face off with each other like they’re playing a game of chess. Everyone is holding their cards close to their chest, and only the eyes can give them away in showing where they are most vulnerable.

Gosling is having a heck of a year in 2011 with this, “Crazy Stupid Love,” and “Drive.” As with the latter, he brings a smoldering intensity to his performance as he takes Meyers from a political idealist to one who sells out his values when things get rough. With one look he can let us inside his thoughts without saying a single word.

Two of my most favorite performances in “The Ides of March” come from two of the best character actors ever: Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Paul Giamatti. Playing campaign managers for their individual candidates, they brilliantly bring out the moral complexities of each person as their agendas become clear throughout the story. Both also make what could have been convoluted actions or maneuvers appear completely believable as they try to get the upper hand in a fragile political environment. They essentially represent the cynical side of politics where idealism vanished a long time ago and the path Meyers may be forced to go down if he wants to continue working in this realm.

The fabulous Evan Rachel Wood is great as always as Molly Stearns, a campaign intern whose confidence collapses when her secret is realized. Seeing her go from a sexy seducer to the campaign’s most vulnerable employee is handled by her like a pro, and she makes us see Molly as a person while others view her as a crippling concern needing to be quickly and quietly removed. The cruelty of politics comes to hit her character the hardest.

And then there’s the equally fabulous Marisa Tomei who portrays New York Times reporter Ida Horowicz. She enjoys a friendly banter with Gosling from the start which draws us in on a more personal level. It’s there where Tomei traps not just Gosling but the audience as well. She provides us with a friendly face that is later revealed to be a manipulative journalist who wields more power than you might expect one to have. I have yet to see Tomei give a bad performance in anything she does.

What I really like about the screenplay of “The Ides of March” is that it’s not about good guys and bad guys. It’s all about shades of gray and how the hope in politics can be easily and quickly worn down to a cinder of what it once was. Some of the actions in the movie almost feel like something out of the “Saw” as they almost seem illogical and impossible to put together, but it makes sense in regards to the world it takes place in. This would make a great double feature with Mike Nichols’ “Primary Colors” as both deal with the moral compromises made in getting your man elected. But while “Primary Colors” sees something of a light at the end of the tunnel, “The Ides of March” doesn’t let the viewer off as easy.

* * * ½ out of * * * *

Okay, how many dramas and thrillers featuring a lawyer as the main character have we had? Heck, how many novels featuring lawyers have been thrust at us? After all the books written by John Grisham and Scott Turow, you’d think the world would have had enough of legal thrillers whether or not they made it to the silver screen. It all reminds me of that joke we’ve all heard:

“What do you call a thousand lawyers at the bottom of the ocean?”

“A good start!”

As a result, I was in no immediate hurry to check out the latest legal thriller adapted to film, “The Lincoln Lawyer.” It’s about a defense lawyer who has no scruples about what he does, but he ends up getting involved in a case that haunts his conscience like no other. Looking that over, it sounds like “Primal Fear” all over again. How many times have we been down this road?

But alas, while “The Lincoln Lawyer” breaks no new ground, it has many clever twists up its sleeve that distinguishes it from others of its ilk. It is based on the novel of the same name by Michael Connelly who is best known for writing detective novels and crime fiction. One of his previous books, “Blood Work,” was turned into a movie by Clint Eastwood, and it is one of the very few movies that Clint has done recently that actually sucked. It turns out that “The Lincoln Lawyer” though was actually his first legal novel, and introduced the world to one of his most popular characters, Mickey Haller.

Mickey Haller is a criminal defense attorney who spends his time defending the kind of people we would all rather see behind bars. Instead of a regular office, he works out of his Lincoln Town Car which he gets driven around in by Earl (Laurence Mason), a former client of his who is working off legal fees he owes. He has an ex-wife, Margaret McPherson (Marisa Tomei), whom he is still on good terms with even though she works on the opposite side of the court as a prosecutor. They have a daughter whom they both dote on, and you at times wonder why these two even bothered to divorce. If James Carville and Mary Matlin can maintain a marriage, why can’t these two?

Anyway, Mickey ends up defending Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe), a Beverly Hills realtor who is accused of viciously assaulting a prostitute. The case, after some research, looks to be an open and shut deal for this ever so confident lawyer. However, more problems arise to where things are not always as they appear to be.

That’s all I’m going to say about the plot. To say anymore would be to give away a good deal of what happens. What I will say is that it makes for a good story in how someone has to find a way to find justice without losing their job forever as a result.

Much of the success of “The Lincoln Lawyer” belongs to the actor chosen to play Mickey, Matthew McConaughey. After seeing him in so many useless romantic comedies, he gets one of his best roles to date here. Believe me when I say that he is perfectly cast in this role, and he nails Haller’s sly confidence and cocky demeanor as he works his way through the courtroom to get what he wants and needs. Mickey is to an extent an amoral character, one who appears to care less about whether or not those he represents will commit crimes again after he gets them off. But McConaughey is so cool here that we find it impossible to hate him, and we love his (if you’ll forgive the expression) “rico suave” ways around everyone he meets. Whether or not you agree with what he does, we all would love to have his coolness and persuasiveness of character.

It also helps that Matthew is surrounded by a great cast of actors who gives him plenty to work with. Marisa Tomei remains as terrific and super sexy as Haller’s ex-wife, and she shares strong chemistry with McConaughey throughout. We also get an entertaining turn from the always dependable William H. Macy as investigator Frank Levin, Haller’s right hand man in getting the facts be it legally or illegally. We also get strong turns from John Leguizamo, Michael Peña, and Frances Fisher who bring their A game to the plate.

But one performance I want to point out is the one from Ryan Phillippe. As this Beverly Hills playboy who has had everything handed to him on a silver platter, he excels in convincing everyone around and the audience of his character’s intentions. Still, there is that glimmer in his eyes that suggests not everything he says or implies is on the level. Ryan has been better known these past few years as Mr. Reese Witherspoon, but however things went down in that relationship, he deserves to be noted for his acting here and other movies he has been in. Watching him onscreen here is riveting because he always leaves you guessing as to what will happen next.

Directing “The Lincoln Lawyer” is Brad Furman, and the only movie he directed previous to this one is “The Take.” I really liked how vividly he captured the urban environment of Los Angeles, and it never felt like he was filming on some ordinary Hollywood set. With a story like this, Brad could have easily gone in that direction, but he gives each scene a solid reality that doesn’t feel far from the one we inhabit. He also keeps the suspense up throughout and gives us some tension filled scenes that keep us at full attention as if someone is about to come from behind us and bash our brains in.

Like I said, “The Lincoln Lawyer” does not break any new ground in the legal movie genre, but it reinvigorates it with a strong and enigmatic main character and a story that twists in ways we haven’t seen recently or in a long time. In a way, this movie brings Matthew McConaughey around full circle as he made his big breakthrough in the film adaptation of John Grisham’s “A Time To Kill.” Soon or later, this man who says to just “keep on livin’” had to play another lawyer. I hope for his sake that he gets to do a follow up to this one as he has this character down flat. Maybe others could have done it better, but who comes to mind as quickly as Matthew?

* * * out of * * * *