The Paperboy (2012)
Whilst The Paperboy might sound reminiscent of a John Grisham thriller such as A Time to Kill, it isn't. The Paperboy is an ultra grim, downbeat crime drama about a journalist (Matthew McConaughey) who returns to his home town in 1969 Florida. Once there he hires his younger brother (Zac Efron) as a driver and the two set about the case of convicted but seemingly innocent thug (John Cussack) who's on death row for the murder of a racist law man.
The only chink of light in the film being a sequence when the whorish Nicole Kidman pisses on Efron on a beach, but even that is to prevent him slipping into a coma from jelly fish stings.
Despite the pessimistic aura the cast are excellent. From Macy Gray and David Oyelowo to the seemingly always excellent McConaughey, who proves once more that he only plays in rom-coms as a way of putting bread on the table.
Throughout the film there's a thick, sweaty atmosphere, think cheap bourbon and stale cigarette smoke congealing in the oppressive Florida heat which never goes away. Many of the characters are unpleasant, even McConaughey and Efron, whose army of teeny bopping fans are probably in therapy after this, come across as cold anti heroes in a film where morals have decayed past the point of no return.
The Paperboy also continues the resurgence in John Cusack. A fine actor who in this, Frozen Ground, Maps to the Stars and The Raven is moving away from the fresh faced good guy roles to meatier, more substantial fayre.
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