This is one of the best crime dramas to be released in a long time. The psychological aspect is not hard for the audience to follow but allows for a calculated amount of questioning and suspense.

In another Hannibal Lecter-type roll, Anthony Hopkins plays a deceitful, witty and brilliant millionaire who discovers his wife is cheating on him. When his character, Ted Crawford, is arrested for killing his wife, the fun begins.

Fracture is surprisingly clever. Although Hopkins is type-cast, he manages to separate Crawford from Lecter, despite adding a few well-placed nostril flares. A young, ladder-climbing assistant D.A., Willy Beachum, (Ryan Gosling) takes over the case after giving his two-weeks notice and seeing it as open and shut. With one foot out the door, a confession and a gun, Crawfords case seems like the perfect win to close his civil servant career.

Crawford, however, in all his obsessive-compulsiveness, is not letting Beachum have his sure-fire win without a fight. In fact, it seems like Crawford has every step planned out.

This is one of the best crime dramas to be released in a long time. The psychological aspect is not hard for the audience to follow but allows for a calculated amount of questioning and suspense.

Both Gosling and Hopkins play their characters well, which helps keep the focus on the film. Gosling is convincing in his role as the ambitious, money-driven charmer who needs to succeed because of his poor upbringing.

As with most films, there is a sexual element. In Fracture, it comes in the form of Beachum hooking up with his beautiful soon-to-be boss, Nikki Gardner (Rosamund Pike). While not entirely plausible, this connection keeps the prospect of his new job in the back of viewers minds.

At times the film moves somewhat slowly, particularly in the middle when the scenes take place in the courtroom or while Beachum looks for new evidence, but this is typical of even the most celebrated crime dramas.

Other aspects of Fracture worth noting are the contrasting scenes of Los Angeles, including the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the architecturally stunning home of Crawford, the District Attorneys office and Beachums home.

Overall, Fracture is a witty psychological crime drama where the ending only becomes apparent as it is unfolding, which is saying something compared to other recent film releases. This would be a great date movie because it provides room for discussion upon leaving the theater, and is likely to provoke a positive response.

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