The Company You Keep

The Company You Keep

Rated R and Released in Grand Rapids 4/26/13

Reviewed 4/30/13 at Celebration North Theatre

with Gary

3 out of 5 Js in QUIET Rating System

Robert Redford stars and directs this latest film which has a twinge of political statement, although it is hard to really grasp this unlike Redford's All the President's Men. Both Gary and I agreed we liked the mystery and intrigue in this, although slowish, and it did keep our interest. This will probably appeal to the 40+ age group, as I don't see Danelle or Brandon liking it at all.

Redford stars as small town attorney Jim Grant, who is a widower and single dad to his young daughter. Grant, along with his other radical cohorts, have been on the run since the 70s following a bank robbery that left one dead. The recent arrest of fellow fanatic Sharon Solarz (Susan Sarandon), spurs a chain of events that starts the unraveling of the mystery. A fresh faced reporter, Ben Shepard (Shia LaBeouf), gets some notoriety after cracking the story that catapults Grant to seek out the members of the gang spread across the country.

Grant wants to get one in particular and the ultimate goal is to clear his name so he can proceed on with his life raising his daughter. Why didn't he do this sooner or wait 30+ years if he felt so innocent? This never really is explained. The police are on Grant's tail at every turn while Shepard is doing his own detective work to conclude the big story he started. There is a line of great actors besides Redford and Sarandon that have some screen time: Terrence Howard, Stanley Tucci, Nick Nolte, Richard Jenkins, Julie Christie, Chris Cooper. Too bad they didn't ramp up any of these fine actor's roles. To call this movie thrilling is a stretch, but certainly the chase and puzzle trail has enough excitement. If director Redford would have loosened the reins, especially in the ending, it could have been a needed improvement. But Redford is known to act and direct with insane restraint - so there it is!

QUIET Rating system: 3 Js

Quality: JJj

Understood story:  JJJ

Interest: JJJ

Entertainment:  JJJj

Time:  JJj