Plot: What’s it about?
Josh Duhamel plays Ben Cahill, an ambitious lawyer married to an overworked nurse, Charlotte (Alice Eve). Ben is having an affair with a woman named Emily (Malin Akerman) who’s also involved with a billionaire named Arthur Denning (Anthony Hopkins). It’s not long before she’s kidnapped and Arthur receives a phone call about the ransom and instructions for delivering the money. This is when two shady agents get involved. Ben’s boss, Charles Abrams is played by Al Pacino, and this eventually leads to him being stuck in the middle of a struggle between Denning and Abrams. Arthur Denning is a corrupt pharmaceutical executive and Abrams is a lawyer who are playing against each other.
If the plot sounds complicated that’s because it is, but it plays out much better over the course of the film. It’s interesting to see two big stars like Pacino and Hopkins in a film that flew under the radar. Things start out promising enough, but the plot quickly grows more preposterous as it goes on. The early kidnapping stuff is far more interesting that where the plot leads towards the second half. Most of the cast do capable work, but Pacino gives a shady performance. His accent is all wrong and he seems to be trying too hard. I’m not sure what’s going on with his wild hair, but that’s a story for another day. There are many intriguing elements here, but the final product feels unfinished and sloppy. With a better screenplay and tighter direction, this might’ve been a more worthwhile experience. As it stands, it hardly makes an impression. It’s at least well-paced that we can easily go along with it, but it never lives up to its earlier moments. The score is also annoying as if it wants to make sure we’re never too bored with the film.
Video: How’s it look?
Misconduct is presented in a 2.40:1 AVC HD image. This is a solid overall transfer, but the visuals are a little too inconsistent. Some scenes sparkle and show off impressive depth, while others have a softer, rougher look, this seems to be rather random, as opposed to the intended visual design. But when the image looks good, it looks damn good, with great clarity, its just a shame the entire movie doesn’t look this good. I found colors to be bright and natural for the most part, but contrast is on the light side and can waver at times. So not a knockout visual treatment, but a more than solid presentation.
Audio: How’s it sound?
This DTS HD Master Audio option is also rather inconsistent. In most scenes, the audio is front channel based and rather reserved, which is fine. But then when the surrounds kick in, they boom and drown out the other elements. So instead of a smooth, well planned audio presentation, we have a hot & cold mixture of quiet and loud. This means you might have to fiddle with the volume in some scenes, to keep the sound at a proper level. Aside from the volume concerns, this is a pretty basic soundtrack that never makes much of an impression. The audio sounds fine, but never much more than that.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- The Making of Misconduct – After seeing the film, it does not surprise me that this is your run-of-the-mill “making of…” featurette. Granted, we get some behind the scenes footage and a few clips with the stars, but it’s nothing mind-blowing.
- Deleted Scenes – I don’t see what the harm of putting these in the film would have done, but they’re here if you have the urge to peruse them.
The Bottom Line
Despite a promise start and intriguing premise, Misconduct can’t help but feel like a missed opportunity. The film goes off in too many unsatisfying directions to make much of an impression. Al Pacino also gives one of his weaker performances as well. I cringed every time he came on screen. Skip it.
