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The Life of David Gale

When anti-capital punishment activist David Gale (Kevin Spacey) ends up on death row for the rape/murder of his colleague Constance Harraway (Laura Linney), he waits until four days before his execution to give his first interview. He agrees to meet with Bitsey Bloom (Kate Winslet), a naive young reporter with a history of protecting sources for a significant sum of money. Not too long into the movie, we realize that the brilliant ex-philosophy professor is playing Bitsey, but it takes a while before we know why. Gale recounts how a false rape charge caused him to lose his job, wife, child, house -- even his self-esteem. When he learns that his dearest friend Constance is dying of Leukemia, he feels that his cause is more important than his life. Resigned to the fact that he will die, Gale pleads with Bitsey to prove his innocence f! or the sake of his son. He wants the world to know how he lived his life and the reasons behind decisions he made.

‘The Life of David Gale’ works on several levels. First, it’s an old fashioned ‘who done it’. Even in the beginning, it seems unlikely that David Gale would murder Constance, so the mind races looking for other likely culprits. Then, there is the political intrigue. Isn’t it odd that the leading capital punishment activist in Texas finds himself on death row? Was he set up? Is it a tragedy? Certainly all the elements are in place -- the brilliant David Gale brought down by his own flaws. Perhaps it’s an ideological treatise? In the beginning of the movie, Gale gives a lecture to his students where he lays out the philosophical underpinnings of his later actions. There’s the suspenseful ending when Bitsey finds definitive evidence of Gale’s innocence and rushes back to the prison to try and prevent his execution. T! hen, there’s the Hitchcock final twist, when Bitsey learns the whole truth about Constance Harraway’s death. This movie uses the death penalty as a plot device -- but make no mistake, ‘The Life of David Gale’ is not about capital punishment. The core issue of this story is man’s commitment to a cause -- any cause. The richness of an individual’s personal life limits how far he will go to further his beliefs. Family, friends, job, home -- as long as these elements compete for a person’s loyalty, passion is diluted. However, without those connections, action in defense of ideals becomes more extreme. Happy people hand out brochures, volunteer for administrative duties or demonstrate in support of their values. It’s those who have nothing left to lose, who lay their lives on the line for political ideologies -- whether they are suicide bombers, Branch Davidians or the Jewish defenders of the Warsaw Ghetto.

Written by: Joyce Faulkner

Reviewers Rating: 8.5
Reader's Rating: 9.70
Reader's Votes: 13

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