Directed by: Alan Parker
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Kate Winslet, Laura Linney, Gabriel Mann, Matt Craven, Rhona Mitra, Leon Rippy
The Life of David Gale throws all sense to the winds in the final thirty minutes or so. There is suspension of disbelief...and then there is this movie. I will tread lightly so as not to spoil anything for those who have not gotten around to seeing this film in the last thirteen years. But be prepared for some of the dumbest developments you may see in many a moon. They unravel any goodwill built up in the first ninety minutes. A lot was made of the liberal view of capital punishment when the film was released, but regardless of what side of the argument you represent, you will likely agree the direction the film takes is inexplicable.
The David Gale of the film's title is played by Kevin Spacey. He is a death row inmate days away from execution who tells his story to a national magazine reporter named Bitsey Bloom (Winslet). The irony here is that Gale is a famed anti-capital punishment activist who now finds himself facing execution for the rape and murder of fellow activist Constance Harraway (Linney). He claims to be innocent and framed. Bloom believes him and attempts to unearth evidence to stop the execution. Ok so far. The flashbacks to what brought Gale to this point harbor a certain power as we see the once respected philosophy professor/activist's life fall apart at the seams. He is in a loveless marriage, drinks too much, and one night has sex with a former student and is accused falsely of rape. It is sad to see. The murder comes later.
Spacey brings a world-weariness to the film which we may not have seen in some of his previous performances. He excels at playing the smartest guy in the room who doesn't shy away from telling you all about how smart he is. Here he doesn't appear to have the answers and has resigned himself to the fact that his execution will go on as scheduled. He doesn't expect to be saved, even though he is confident in Bloom's abilities as a journalist. The performances are solid, as you would expect from Spacey, Winslet, and Linney. They are at the service of this movie though, which is a pity.
The victim, Constance, is a vigorous, outspoken opponent of the death penalty who has some secrets herself. She was found handcuffed with a bag over her head, bruises and welts all over her body, and David's semen in her. He is convicted of her murder. And now come the plot twists which will leave you aghast for all of the wrong reasons.
Bitsey and her intern Zack (Mann) are followed around by a mysterious man in a pickup truck. He is an ominous presence. Does he want to stop Bitsey from exposing the truth or does he hold a key piece of evidence which could shift the nature of the entire case? Yes and no. After her last interview session with David, she returns to her motel room to find a videotape showing Constance with a bag over her head fighting for her last breath. Bitsey studies the tape, sees something unusual, and uses this to recreate what may have actually happened.
How do I say this without giving away a spoiler and make sense at the same time? We discover the purpose of the videotape and later the nature of what really happened. The motives, as ridiculous as they seem, become clear at the 11th hour. Why the parties involved would ever agree to do something like this is farfetched and unrealistic, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and say they are passionate about what they believe. With that being said, why would they even risk Bitsey discovering the truth by leaving her teasing videotapes? If she discovers everything in time, she could blow the whole operation. This is done so the audience can have a last-minute race against the clock, but it makes zero sense in hindsight.
It turns out there are two more videotapes to be seen, each divulging a bit more information so by the end the full truth will be known and we shake our heads at its stupidity. Why, why, why would one of the characters agree to go through with the consequences of this? It is so extreme, even by extremist standards, that we can not accept it. The answer is because The Life of David Gale is at its heart a thriller and wants to provide a cheap thrill at the end without ever really thinking about how silly it is. The audience will be so taken by the swerve that the filmmakers believe it won't be questioned. By the way, how many copies of this videotape are lying around? And who did the editing on them?
I have been accused of overthinking and analyzing certain movies too much and that I should just go with the flow and enjoy them. There are movies in which I can do that with relative ease. But movies are art and sometimes art needs to be investigated beyond the surface to reveal the motives of those who created it. You can either accept The Life of David Gale without analysis, or you can come to the conclusion that it is just ludicrous.
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