Film.com's FREE movie of the week is "Love the Hard Way." Oscar-winner Adrien Brody and Charlotte Ayanna star in this drama about a thief who falls for a curious, beautiful young woman. As their intimacy grows, a slick cop (Pam Greer) is closing in.
When shy Sam confesses to his protective older brother Rocky that he is getting pummeled daily by the towering school bully George, the two boys plan the perfect payback. They invite George on a birthday river trip tailor-made to end in the bully’s humiliation. Rocky's pals Clyde and Marty and Sam’s budding girlfriend Millie also join the journey, which starts almost immediately with misgivings. Seeing George in a new light, as a lonely kid desperate for friendship and attention, Sam wants to call the whole thing off. But the boat and the plot are already in motion, and no one can foresee the surprises and accidents that are to come.
Other reviews
PETER RELIC -
January 13, 2005
"Nobody's got sympathy for guys who throw fat kids in the river," says brutish outing leader Marty (Scott Mechlowicz). The line pegs both the plot and the downfall of this amateurish mash-up of River's Edge and Stand by Me. While youngsters Sam (Rory Culkin) and Millie (Carly Schroeder) project the film's doe-eyed conscience, writer-director Jacob Aaron Estes forgets that it's nearly impossible to build suspense without also building in a few surprises, and sadly there are none to be had.
PETER RELIC -
January 13, 2005
