This is Movie Jail, a unique maximum security prison that houses some of the worst writers, directors, actors and producers from Hollywood and beyond. Their crimes? The offenses vary from convict to convict but most of these inmates have contributed negatively to the film world to some capacity* and his or her misdeeds have covered a long enough period of time that the authorities had to intervene. In each column a defendant is put on trial, arguments are made, and then it is up to YOU, the jury, to decide if the person is guilty or not guilty of crimes against cinema. Their lives are in your hands, dude.
The Defendant
The Case
The Prosecution: Gimme Shelter, The Nut Job, Breakout, HairBrained, Escape from Planet Earth, Stand Off, Furry Vengeance, Extraordinary Measures, Inkheart, The Last Time, Journey to the End of the Night, Monkeybone, Dudley Do-Right, Mrs. Winterbourne, The Scout
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, if the prosecution had to only use one word to describe Brendan Fraser's career, it would be odd. Very, very odd. Although he was the face of a profitable franchise with The Mummy series, the past decade or so hasn't been kind to the actor, but a lot of the blame falls on Mr. Fraser himself, due to his bad career choices.
Even at the peak of his star power (late 1990s/early 2000s), Mr. Fraser had a habit of appearing in questionable projects. Monkeybone and Dudley Do-Right were both massive critical and financial failures, and while Looney Tunes: Back in Action is an okayish movie, it had an underperforming run at the box office office.
But things really started to go wrong for Mr. Fraser somewhere around 2009, after the release of Journey to the Center of the Earth. Since then, the actor has starred in multiple negatively reviewed movies, with the biggest offender being 2010's Furry Vengeance, which is at a paltry 8% at Rotten Tomatoes. Mr. Fraser has also starred in such "winners" as Breakout and Stand Off, and he helped produce both films. Mr. Fraser isn't a bad actor, but he's certainly not a strong one either, and hasn't done much to prove he doesn't belong in Movie Jail.
The Mummy is getting a reboot, and in the prosecution's opinion, Mr. Fraser's career desperately needs a reboot as well. A long prison stay won't exactly help the actor, however he definitely needs to go to prison for his crimes.
The Defense: The Mummy series, Pawn Shop Chronicles, Journey to the Center of the Earth, The Air I Breathe, Crash, Looney Tunes: Back in Action, The Quiet American, Bedazzled, Blast from the Past, Gods and Monsters, Still Breathing, George of the Jungle, Twenty Bucks, School Ties, Encino Man
Ladies and gentlemen, the defense doesn't have a concrete explanation as to why my client's career is where it is today, but we will defend Mr. Fraser because we believe he's a solid (although not fantastic) actor, and he seems to be a decent dude.
Mr. Fraser's charisma is evident in The Mummy movies, and the defense doesn't think he's as wooden of an actor as many have claimed. The defense enjoyed his dramatic turns in The Quiet American, Gods and Monsters and Crash, but the defense understands part of the reason why Mr. Fraser is up for Movie Jail is because it has been years since a well-received movie was released (his last fresh film was 2008's Journey to the Center of the Earth) starring the actor.
As for Mr. Fraser's recent efforts, he had a memorable role in Pawn Shop Chronicles, and while The Nut Job was panned by critics, the defense thought his voice work was just fine. Mr. Fraser also had a very good performance in The Air I Breathe, but unfortunately the movie itself received scathing reviews from most critics.
Yes, Mr. Fraser's career does need a reboot of sorts, but the defense is hopeful he will be able to turn things around, and we don't believe the actor needs to be put behind bars.
IN CLOSING…
What should we do with The Mummy star? Do you think Mr. Fraser just needs the right role in the right movie to get his career back on track, or is it too late for the actor? Is Brendan Fraser GUILTY or NOT GUILTY?
*The cases for and against a defendant going to Movie Jail by the author are not necessarily his views and opinions but they are some of the beliefs that one would use to effectively make an argument for both sides. Not quite a devil's advocate but you get the point. Anyway, this is all in fun so don't take it too seriously. We have a separate jail for those people called "Troll Tower" and believe me you do NOT want to go there.
WHAT SAY YOU, GUILTY OR NOT?
LAST WEEK'S VERDICT
Director Len Wiseman was found NOT GUILTY of all charges in last week's trial. Mr. Wiseman avoided a prison term thanks to his Underworld series (with several jury members saying they are forgettable, but still fun films) and his work on Live Free or Die Hard. But the prosecution isn't happy about the verdict, and the court is open to revisiting the case against the director if he has another poorly received movie.
PREVIOUS VERDICTS
GUILTY Adam Sandler, Eddie Murphy, Vince Vaughn, Tim Burton, The Farrelly Brothers, Michael Bay, Jessica Alba, Ice Cube, Gerard Butler, Halle Berry, Marlon Wayans, Julia Roberts, M. Night Shyamalan , Katherine Heigl , Cuba Gooding, Jr., Tyler Perry, Cameron Diaz, Kate Hudson, Ashton Kutcher, Happy Madison Productions, Jennifer Lopez, Bruce Willis, Paul W.S. Anderson, Matthew Broderick, Sarah Jessica Parker, Brett Ratner, Rob Cohen, Renee Zellweger, Shia LaBeouf, Renny Harlin, Diane Keaton, McG, Demi Moore, King Joffrey (Game of Thrones Special), David Spade, Spike Lee, Kevin James, Joel Schumacher, Ehren Kruger, Chris Rock, Mark Steven Johnson, Mickey Rourke, Ashley Judd, Uma Thurman, Josh Duhamel, Saw Franchise (Halloween Edition), Zach Braff, Sam Worthington, Melissa McCarthy, The Wachowski Siblings, Kate Bosworth, Garry Marshall, David Goyer
NOT GUILTY Robert De Niro, Val Kilmer, Nic Cage, John Travolta, Oliver Stone, Ben Stiller, Jim Carrey, Wes Craven, Matthew McConaughey, Robert Rodriguez, Kristen Stewart, Roland Emmerich, Kevin Costner, Sandra Bullock, Hilary Swank, Al Pacino, Keanu Reeves, Kevin Smith, Channing Tatum, Jennifer Aniston, Owen Wilson, Anna Faris, Robin Williams, Charlize Theron, Ray Liotta, Jason Statham, Paul Walker, Will Smith, Salma Hayek, Michael Cera, Johnny Depp, Ryan Reynolds, Milla Jovovich, John Singleton, Jon Voight, Jack Black, Brian De Palma, Jerry Bruckheimer, Nicole Kidman, Justin Timberlake, Freddy Krueger (Halloween Edition), Johnny Knoxville, Orlando Bloom, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dan Aykroyd, Sylvester Stallone, Gavin Hood, Jason Lee, Jennifer Garner, Carrie-Anne Moss, Kate Beckinsale, John Cusack, Chris Columbus, Clive Owen, Terrence Howard, Andrew Niccol, Drew Barrymore, Steve Martin, Joel Silver, Michelle Rodriguez, Kiefer Sutherland, Dario Argento, Susan Sarandon, Dennis Quaid, Rob Reiner, Gwyneth Paltrow, Mel Gibson, Pierce Brosnan, Roberto Orci & Alex Kurtzman, Ivan Reitman, Stephen Sommers, Shawn Levy, Jai Courtney, Ridley Scott, Peter Jackson, Jamie Foxx, Luc Besson, Jason Reitman, Mila Kunis, Jennifer Connelly, Sienna Miller, Ben Barnes, Simon West, Len Wiseman
UPDATES: Robert De Niro, Nicolas Cage and Roland Emmerich, Jim Carrey, Robert Rodriguez and Gerard Butler, Jessica Alba, Julia Roberts and The Farrelly Brothers, Ben Stiller, Tim Burton and Shia LaBeouf, Johnny Depp, Kevin Smith & Chris Rock