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Betty Anne Waters (Hilary Swank) talks to her brother Kenny (Sam Rockwell) before he goes to jail in the fact-based drama “Conviction.” |
The performances are better than the material in Tony Goldwyn’s fact-based drama “Conviction”, and the material was pretty good to begin with.
“Conviction” (a great title for its obvious double meanings) traces the odyssey of Betty Anne Waters, a single mother and high school dropout who figured the only way her brother would ever get out of jail for a murder he didn’t commit would be if she went to law school, became an attorney, and got him out.
You could say she’s just a bit driven.
The single-mindedness of Betty Anne’s actions, the raw faith in her brother, and the willingness to sacrifice two decades of her life, all combine to create an irresistible story for a motion picture.
Add double-Oscar winner Hilary Swank in the role of Betty Anne and “Conviction” takes on its own quality of gotta-see.
Adopting a subtle New England accent, Swank presents Betty Anne as multilayers of warmth and humanity wrapped around a steel core.
She and her brother Kenny have been watching each other’s backs for all their struggling lives, as we witness in numerous flashbacks that reveal two children who have nothing in their world but a supportive sibling.
The adult Kenny is played by Sam Rockwell, who supplies a cocky, blue-collar swagger and over-the-top personality, laced with an unmistakable trace of latent meanness.
Kenny eventually is arrested and convicted of the 1980 fatal stabbing of a woman in Ayer, Mass., a case investigated by cop Nancy Taylor (Melissa Leo) who obtains incriminating evidence from two of Kenny’s former lovers.
Betty Anne remains convinced of Kenny’s innocence. (Read more…)