THE NEXT THREE DAYS ***

Paul Haggis directed this Thriller. Watch Preview. Cast: Russell Crowe, Elizabeth Banks, Liam Neeson, Brian Dennehy, RZA, Moran Atias, Lennie James, Allan Steele, Ty Simpkins, Leslie McCombs, Jason Beghe, Aisha Hinds, Kathy Fitzgerald, Olivia Wilde, Jonathan Tucker, Remy Nozik, Daniel Stern. Rated PG-13 for violence, drug material, language, some sexuality and thematic elements. Running time is two hours and two minutes.

Refusing to be deterred by impossible odds or his own inexperience, a man (Crowe) devises an elaborate escape plot to free his wife (Banks) from prison and plunges into a dangerous and unfamiliar world, ultimately risking everything for the woman he loves.

This was a pleasant surprise. I was expecting a pretty run-of-the-mill "lets break mom out of jail" film but this is a high calibre thriller. The pacing is a little slow at first as Crowe gives up on the law and starts using his intelligence (he's a college prof) to develop an escape plan. Once the planning gets started, the pace picks up and you've got a real thriller by the end. Most films of this type are fairly predictable, but not this one. I had no idea how this would end until we actually reached there. Banks, who is usually seen in comedy roles gets to do some emoting here and she does very well. Neeson and Dennehy have very little screen time...blink and you'll miss them. If you like a good action/suspense film this is one you'll want to see. Theatres/Times.