Clear Lines of Demarcation!

Rating: 6/10 (14 April 2019)

Law Abiding Citizen is one of those films of which the production team is likely to think that it is cleverer than it actually turns out to be. Nevertheless the thing that fascinates me about LAC and like films, is the vast chasm of difference existing between critical and general consumer reaction. Case in point is that at time of writing, it has a Metacritic average of 39%, a Rotten Tomatoes rating of an even worse 26%, whilst an IMDB rating of 7.4 from over a quarter of a million contributors. This is saying that by and large, the critics hated it , whilst the general punters really liked it. In any one's language that's quite a differential. I'm giving it a fence-sitting 6 for the following reasons.
It's a well-made film from an experienced director with a cast list that exudes quality. The story undoubtedly raises some very valid questions about the strength of integrity surrounding the ongoing workings of not just the U.S. legal system, but those of Western countries in general. It's almost a daily occurrence reported in various media outlets, that alleged perpetrators of serious crimes are given seemingly sweetheart sentencing deals. Law Abiding Citizen takes a what if approach in playing out a scenario, where the wrong type of person, with the right type of skills and resources, has his revenge on the system that he perceives let down his loved ones.
In an almost horrifyingly gripping prologue, Clyde Shelton loses his family in a home invasion. He later feels betrayed by prosecuting attorney Nick Rice's actions in handing the instigating crim a pretty generous deal to secure his accomplice's conviction of murder. This begins a compelling narrative, that does occasionally throw up some genuinely unexpected twists.
To my way of thinking it is pretty entertaining while you watch things play out, but does require viewers to accept a number of genuinely contrived story points, that at best have slight degrees of realism and at worst are pretty much absurd. At a movie level this sees us having to accept the revelations that Clyde Shelton has a (ever-reliable in movies) Special Forces background, a lawyer's knowledge of criminal law, a genius ability to invent and adapt tools and resources he requires and the ability to build and resource hide-outs in the most unlikely of places.
LAC thus becomes a variation of the vigilante movie in reverse. We wonder which of the ostensible "good guys" are going to be the next victims and how is it to be achieved.
Gerard Butler both produces and plays Shelton, which was originally offered to Jamie Foxx, who requested instead to swap with Butler and play the increasingly frustrated DA. Both actors are very convincing, especially Butler who demonstrates he is adept at highlighting both his goodness and badness in the one character. The hook with this film is that no matter how horrid his actions are, a percentage of the audience will see Shelton as the aggrieved hero and Rice, the villain of the piece.
For me, as entertaining as it is and to a degree thought-provoking, ultimately Law Abiding Citizen becomes just too unbelievable to take too seriously at all.