Film Review #131: Fragments
With prices for cinema tickets now reaching ridiculous heights it’s not often I will treat myself to a new release unless it’s something I simply cannot wait for. Instead, I’m happy to content myself with a cheap DVD or a film on TV which may have slipped through my critical net and, believe me, there have been far too many. Whether the films featured here are recent or old I’ll still be providing my honest opinion on them and, with the benefit of hindsight in many cases, may offer a slightly different take to contemporary reviewers.
Fragments (2008)
Gun crime is a worldwide crisis and I recall a time when the use of guns in the UK was unthinkable but now drive by shootings are not uncommon, society is far less safer than it used to be and things sadly don’t look like changing anytime soon. In Rowan Woods’ Fragments a group of people are left picking up the pieces after witnessing a shooting in a diner. Dramas like this are often worthwhile experiences when they’re done right but is this one?
It’s an ordinary day when a group of people are in a diner and a man walks in and suddenly opens fire on random people before turning the gun on himself. Those that survive are left struggling to continue with their lives. Waitress Carla Davenport (Kate Beckinsale) begins neglecting her baby while she looks for comfort through one night stands. Anna Hagen (Dakota Fanning), who saw her father killed, becomes more popular at school but searches for answers through God. Her friend Jimmy Jaspersen (Josh Hutcherson), who also witnessed the shooting, becomes withdrawn from his friends and family. Charlie Archenault (Forest Whitaker), a compulsive gambler, suddenly finds his luck changing and he proceeds to light up the casinos winning fortune after fortune. Finally Dr Bruce Laraby (Guy Pearce), who left the diner just minutes before the shooting, begins experimenting with a treatment for migraine by drugging his wife, Joan (Embeth Davidtz).
The shooting at the centre of the film is as shocking as you would expect any shooting to be. However, the focus of the film is the impact on the characters and this is sadly where the film does have its issues. Not all the characters are particularly interesting. Carla is serving at the diner when the shooting happens and as awful as the ordeal is her reaction of trying to sleep with every man in sight while her baby lies alone crying comes across as somewhat selfish and uninteresting. Jimmy’s reaction is more authentic, complete withdrawal from everyone and everything, an understandable response. His friend Anna has more attention at school than she is used to but finding sanctuary in God seems a bit over the top, especially when she begins trying to convert Jimmy. The only decent aspect about Anna’s story is the secret she is carrying about something that happened at the diner and that is worth the wait.
The best parts of the film concern Charlie and Dr Laraby. Charlie is shot in the diner but walks out of hospital and immediately heads off to the casino to gamble. His luck seems to change and he suddenly has the Midas touch whenever he throws the dice. It’s everything he’s ever dreamed of but many gambling addicts sadly don’t know when to stop and that is the case for Charlie. Dr Laraby spends his time having to fight off Carla who insists on booking as many appointments as she can to see the doctor with her baby though, thankfully, he doesn’t decide to cheat on his wife though temptation is clearly there. Instead Dr Laraby begins slipping a new experimental drug into his wife’s food to help treat her migraine. He means her no harm of course but with any experiment there needs to be safety measures in place.
Fragments is an interesting story, an important one really, but it sadly doesn’t work. Given the likes of Pearce and Whitaker are among the cast I was hopeful this would be a decent film but it is anything but. Not enough of these characters are interesting enough and while the revelations about the shooting are interesting in the end it isn’t enough to rescue the film.
Fragments had the potential to be great but it can’t overcome a group of characters who are divided between interesting and pointless. Some scenarios work well enough but most of the film fails in the end and what should be a thought-provoking drama isn’t remotely moving.
Verdict: 5/10
Living in Yorkshire, UK, married to Donna and playing frazzled Dad to six cats! I'm the author of fantasy novel Fezariu's Epiphany and I'm currently working on my second book, A World Apart.
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Beautiful review David. We don’t know what may happen on the rest of the days. The movie review was great. I want to watch it; fragment is another eye opener movie that can bring a lot of people to value the life that was given to them. Can I ask you if the movie can be downloaded for free?
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